Puss in Boots Movie Storybook

Available in the App Store

[appimg 473100476]

Prior to writing the review of Puss in Boots Movie Storybook I was not all that familiar with the app. Not because we didn’t own the app; it’s just not an app my family used a lot; maybe because we are not big movie watchers. So, I was curious to find out why it blew away the competition, by more than 110 votes, in our Readers’ Choice Best 10 Kids Apps for 2011 and was named #1. What makes this app stand out above the rest?

Puss in Boots Movie Storybook is just one of many titles released by iStoryTime. This universal app is exactly as its name says; it’s a movie storybook. The book includes images, audio and video from the movie. In-story activities, auto navigation and narration options, and additional movie images and audio have been included. The navigation feature makes it easy to move around the book quickly.

There are three ways to enjoy the story; auto play, read to me and read to myself. I found the auto play to be a bit too fast in turning the pages after the narration was finished. It didn’t allow for enough time to investigate. If you investigate during the narration, the narration is paused until you come back to it. While this may be nice for some, I found it to be too choppy. The read to me option narrates the story and allows for time to explore before you turn the page. Having the three choices is great and only adds to the value of the app. I could see us using the auto play when the kids just want to watch it as a movie; the read to me when they are feeling a bit more adventurous; and the read to myself when we feel in the mood to be narrator.

Regardless of which option you choose to read the book, plan on spending quite a bit of time if you want to finish the entire thing. It is a lengthy book; making it a good for long car rides.

Bottom-line: Puss in Boots Movie Storybook is a good mix of a movie and a book; providing your family with many hours of entertainment for a reasonable price.