The folk at Hallmark sent me a recordable storybook for Tricky and they've come a LONG way since then. With the old ones, the tape would keep going whether you were keeping up or not... with these, the sound is recorded, in your own voice, and is only played when on that page (fancy light sensors).
We had a bit of a play:
Now nothing beats sitting down and spending time reading, sounding out the words and interacting with the story, but these would be good as a 'sometimes' reader (like a sometimes food, ya know?) perhaps when you've left the kids with a babysitter, or if you're on a road trip and the second you look at a book in a moving vehicle you throw up... or something.
The musical introduction for each page is a little long and distracting for someone as young as Tricky, who just wanted to turn the page for more music, so I think it would suit a slightly older child more. So these are going on the shelf for a few months and they'll be brought back down when he's ready.
Thanks to Hallmark I have TWO books to give away and you can choose from one of five titles. To enter leave a comment below telling me what you'd do in the five minutes of free time you would get when the book reads to your children. I'd play on twitter, obviously.
Entry is open to Australian residents only. Entries close at 10pm AEST on Monday 19th September 2011 at which time a winner will be chosen using a random number generator. Make sure you sign in to the comment platform with a valid email address/twitter handle or leave your details as part of your comment so you can be contacted. Winner has one week to reply to notification, failing that, the prize will be redrawn. The prize is provided by Communicado and Hallmark and is not transferable.
Winner to choose from the following available titles: Winnie The Pooh’s Plan Bee, All The Ways I Love You, My Little Princess, Hey Diddle Diddle, and Lightening McQueen and His Winning Team.
