The Wrong Book
If you like a story app which feels like a “proper” book, take a look at The Wrong Book by Nick Bland (developed by We Are Wheelbarrow). It looks like a book sitting on a table, and as you turn the pages they give a satisfying fleurmp sound. (Insert your own page-turning sound here.) Let’s allow the main character to introduce himself: “My Name is Nicholas Ickle, and this book is about…” But Nicholas never quite manages to tell us, as he is constantly interrupted by a barrage of characters including an elephant, monsters, a pirate, rats, and a queen. And to all of them, he replies, “Go away! You’re in the wrong book!”
There are lots of lovely interactive features in the app. Each time Nicholas says “This book is about..,” a clue to the intruder appears behind the page, such as the elephant’s trunk swinging, or rats peeking out. The characters all do different things when pressed, and predictably our favourites are the monsters which break wind repeatedly. Items fall out of the book from each page onto the table, such as peanuts from the elephant’s trunk or treasure from the pirate’s chest. More and more characters and items are added, and Nicholas gets more and more irate, until the climax of the book when THE END is not quite the end after all. The narration by Australian comedian Frank Woodley is brilliant. But you can also record your own narration, and as there is a lot of repetition in the text it is easy and fun for the kids to join in with this.
All in all, this is a really great read, and you will find yourself shouting along with Nicholas – “Go away! You’re in the WRONG BOOK!” It really tempts me to pick up the original picture book too, which is why I thought it was a perfect choice for my first link-up with the Friday Pick{ture Book} blog hop hosted by @childledchaos over at www.childledchaos.me.uk. I’ll be taking part as often as I can, with really great apps which come from equally great picture books.
The Wrong Book, developed by We Are Wheelbarrow, compatible with iPhone 3GS/4/4S, iPod touch (3rd/4th generation) and iPad. Available from http://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/the-wrong-book/id515886918?mt=8 priced at £2.49/$ 3.99 at time of writing.
The Wrong Book was written and illustrated by Nick Bland, and published by Scholastic Australia (2009) ISBN 1741693403
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