Parents' Guide to

iStoryBooks

By Leslie Crenna, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 6+

Colorful, no-frills read-to-me originals and adaptations.

App Android , Kindle Fire Paid, Free Education
iStoryBooks Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this app.

  • iStoryBooks App: Screenshot #1
  • iStoryBooks App: Screenshot #2
  • iStoryBooks App: Screenshot #3

Community Reviews

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age 12+

Based on 2 parent reviews

Taximom4four
Taximom4four Parent of baby, 3, 5 and 8-year-old
February 21, 2014
age 6+

We enjoy iStorybooks

It is entertaining for my children and they enjoy the app.
Howard Edison
Howard Edison Adult
July 30, 2011
age 17+

OMG

It is an inpropiate game why because i press an hidden button and it show me the KLGJFEAJFL AE A DWA JFGOELAKF MAF EA F*explosion*

This title has:

Too much violence
Too much sex
Too much swearing
Too much consumerism
Too much drinking/drugs/smoking
See all 2 parent reviews

What’s It About?

Kids start at the myLibrary main menu and tap the cover of their desired title. They'll have to wait a bit for the download the first time it's read. Stories advance automatically in Movie Mode and are read by clear narration in Read to Me mode. Kids on Android devices have to use the device's back button to navigate from titles back to myLibrary (main menu); on iOS devices they tap the screen and use the "Library" arrow. A plus sign gives parents access to add new titles, but it did not work on iOS devices during our review.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say: (2 ):
Kids say: Not yet rated

While nothing can compare to cuddling up with your kid and reading quality books together, talking books like those found in iStoryBooks also have their place in a child's reading world. An encouraging narrator reads nonfiction, biography, and folk tale adaptations -- some in Spanish -- such as "A to Z Fruits and Vegetable," "Three Little Pigs," "El Zorro Azul," a West African (Gambian) tale called "The Fish Snatcher," and "The Amazing Life of Helen Keller." Modern photos for "Sea Animals" and "Things That Go" fill the screen with crisp colors, and cartoon quality is comparatively good.

On the downside, reading level varies and is usually too high for kids to read themselves. While some titles have only one or two sentences per page, others have five. There is no option for words to be highlighted, and there is no pause button, which would really be nice, especially since mode changes and library deletions can only be made within titles. The occasional misspellings and editing errors will make many parents cringe. While the price is right for this free app, some parents will be left hungering for higher quality literature and cutting-edge art.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Read to your kids every day for at least 20 minutes. Pause occasionally and ask questions that help your kids relate what they're reading about to their real life.

  • Talk with your kids about what they've enjoyed reading about in the books. Follow up with a trip to the local library to find more books on topics that interest them.

App Details

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

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