Appysmarts.com Best Apps for Young Brains


Best apps for kids: Fairy tales.


Great list of bedtime stories to read by a kid on his/her own or just together with parents.
On this list we included apps of different types: storybooks, puzzles, dress up games, coloring pages and more. The best fairy tales for iPad and iPhone usually contains animations and lots of interactions enhancing the reading experience. Of course you will find here tons of popular characters and magical stories for children such as: Red Riding Hood, Little Mermaid, Hansel and Gretel, Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, Puss in Boots, princesses, fairies, gnomes, dragons etc.

If you're looking for good interactive books for your child, please see also:

Best interactive books for kids

Best iPhone interactive books for kids

Best iPad interactive books for kids

StoryToys Grimm’s Collection

StoryToys Grimm’s Collection

Price: 9.99$

iPhone + iPad

Overall Score: 94/100

version reviewed: 1.0.0

reviewed:


Best for: Interactive books, Attention & concentration, Early literacy, Eye-hand coordination, Interaction, Language, Personal & social
Video

What it is/what you do with it: 3 interactive 'pop-up' books (Rapunzel, Red Riding Hood, Hansel and Gretel - about 30 pages each). Three reading modes ('read to me', 'read it myself', 'autoplay').

Extra activities include jigsaw puzzles and 3D sticker books.

What we liked: the concept. Interactions and mini-games complementing the storyline. Quality extra activities: puzzles and 3D sticker books. Spoken instructions. Ease of use. Quality illustrations and simple animations. Professional narration. Sounds and sound effects. 4 language versions.

What we didn't like: no word highlighting.

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The Valentine’s Princess Collection ~ Interactive Books, Jigsaws and Stickers

The Valentine’s Princess Collection ~ Interactive Books, Jigsaws and Stickers

Price: 9.99$

iPhone + iPad

Overall Score: 93/100

version reviewed: 1.0.0

reviewed:


Best for: Interactive books, Attention & concentration, Early literacy, Eye-hand coordination, Interaction, Language, Personal & social

What it is/what you do with it: 3 interactive 'pop-up' books (Sleeping Beauty, Beauty and the Beast, My Little Mermaid - about 30 pages long each book). Three reading modes ('read to me', 'read it myself', 'autoplay').

Extra activities include jigsaw puzzles (36 puzzles, 4 difficulty levels) and 3D sticker books (about 600 stickers).

What we liked: the concept. Interactions and mini-games complementing the storyline. Quality extra activities: puzzles and 3D sticker books. Spoken instructions. Ease of use. Quality illustrations and simple animations. Professional narration. Sounds and sound effects. 4 language versions.

What we didn't like: no word highlighting.

Appysmarts


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Bobby Ball in the Magic World - Eng Version

Bobby Ball in the Magic World - Eng Version

Price: free

May contain `more apps` links
iPad

Overall Score: 92/100

version reviewed: 1.0.0.2

reviewed:


Best for: Education, Attention & concentration, Early literacy, Early math, Eye-hand coordination, Interaction, Language, Memory, Personal & social, Thinking & problem solving, Understanding of the world

What it is: a set of 16 educational minigames helping develop various skills (early maths, memory, logical thinking).

What you do with it: follow Bobby Ball and other characters , who will guide you through 8 scenes (like 'tree house', 'fairy land') and instruct you about the activities. The minigames include: finding differences in 2 pictures, matching animals to their shadows, putting objects or numbers in the correct sequence, matching colors, matching letters, remembering and recalling position of objects etc.
In each scene there is a bonus 'sing-along' song.

What we liked: it is a nice all-round app with good range of activities with difficulty levels which can be adjusted to the child's age. Very good audio instructions (for both navigation and the activities), easy operation, funny characters, nice colorful illustrations and animations. We also liked the option for setting up multiple accounts (with progress tracking for each activity for each account).

What we didn't like: the extra 'interactive' elements in the scenes may distract (especially younger kids) from the main educational activities. Audio quality could be better. The music (especially the 'bonus' songs) may not be for everyone's taste.

Bottom line: it is a very nicely done educational app although a bit expensive. Before buying we recommend that you check out the 'lite' version.

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Amelia - Story Book for Kids

Amelia - Story Book for Kids

Price: 1.99$

May contain `more apps` links
iPhone + iPad

Overall Score: 91/100

version reviewed: 1.0.0

reviewed:


Best for: Interactive books, Attention & concentration, Early literacy, Eye-hand coordination, Interaction, Music & art, Personal & social, Understanding of the world

What is it: An interactive book (20 pages + 1 additional) about adventures of a smart little girl named Amelia and her animal friends.

What you do with it: listen to the narration or read the story yourself (you can switch off the narration in the menu). Play with interactive elements on every page (there are visual hints for most of them, but we can discover more, note: tilt the device to see full scene) and complete minigames (tic-tac-toe, 'repeat the melody', looking for Whine - the Terror of the Night using flashlight etc). Collect 3 stars hidden on every page to unlock the additional scene (it's not necessary to finisk the book).

What we liked: the concept, excellent illustrations, nice characters, plenty of interactive elements enhancing the story, proffesional narration, 2 language versions, visual hints for interactive elements, 'collect the stars' feature, easy operation and navigation (e.g. you can access any page from the menu), music and sound effects, lots of tiny details, overall look and feel of the app.

What we didn't like: words are not highlighted. The story is slightly scary so we recommend it to older kids.

Bottom line: great, engaging, beautifully illustrated, moody interactive story - highly recommended!

Free preview: if you are not sure, please try the free version of the app.

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Cinderella Classic Tale

Cinderella Classic Tale

Price: 4.99$

May contain `more apps` links
iPhone

Overall Score: 90/100

version reviewed: 1.3

reviewed:


Best for: Interactive books, Attention & concentration, Early literacy, Interaction, Language, Personal & social

What it is: an adaptation of the classic tale (about 20 pages long) with extra activities (slider 3x5 puzzles) on every page.

What you do with it: read the book or listen to the narration. Touch characters and objects on the pages for animations and sounds.

What we liked: the story, interactive elements complementing the storyline, professional narration, ease of use, sounds and sound backgrounds, additional content (the puzzles).

What we didn't like: the illustrations and animations are a matter of taste (we would expect a bit more here). Links to other apps by the publisher. The reading options could be better (e.g. small font, words are not highlighted when read). The app could be 'snappier'.

Free preview: if you are not sure, please try the free version of the Cinderella Classic Tale app.

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StoryToys Beauty and the Beast

StoryToys Beauty and the Beast

Price: 1.99$

iPhone

Overall Score: 89/100

version reviewed: 1.0.2

reviewed:


Best for: Interactive books, Attention & concentration, Early literacy, Eye-hand coordination, Interaction, Music & art, Personal & social
Video

What it is: An interactive 'pop-up' version of the traditional fairy tale. About 25 pages and 9 interactive 3D scenes.

What you do with it: three reading modes ('read to me', 'read it myself', 'autoplay'). Touch objects in the scenes for extra animations and sounds.

The interactive scenes/minigames include: sorting autumn leaves by the color, creating pies from 3 ingredients, finding the way through the snow-covered maze, playing ping-pong etc (view our video walkthrough for more details).

What we liked: the concept. The story (as the adaptation of the original tale). The activities/games complementing the storyline. Spoken instructions. Easy operation. Quality illustrations and animations. Good narration. Sounds and sound effects. 4 language versions. Store links, more apps link and update messages can be turned off in the Parent Center. Overall look and feel of the app.

What we didn't like: the reading options could be better (the text is not highlighted when read by the narrator). The extra activities get repetitive after you have read the book several times (and they could offer more educational value - some of them are really simple, like the 'dress up' game).

General notes about our book reviews: although when reviewing books, we try not to review the story itself, the general impressions will be reflected in the Overall Score.

The Age Range assigned to books will be usually broader compared to other apps, as they can be useful for both younger (with parent/narrator reading) or older (reading on their own) kids.

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Valentines Princess Collection - Android version

Valentines Princess Collection - Android version

Price: 4.99$

Android

Overall Score: 88/100

version reviewed: 1.0.0

reviewed:


Best for: Interactive books, Attention & concentration, Early literacy, Eye-hand coordination, Interaction, Language, Personal & social
Video

What it is/what you do with it: 3 interactive 'pop-up' books (Sleeping Beauty, Beauty and the Beast, My Little Mermaid - about 30 pages long each book). Three reading modes ('read to me', 'read it myself', 'autoplay').

Extra activities include jigsaw puzzles (36 puzzles, 4 difficulty levels) and 3D sticker books (about 600 stickers).

What we liked: the concept. Interactions and mini-games complementing the storyline. Quality extra activities: puzzles and 3D sticker books. Spoken instructions. Ease of use. Quality illustrations and simple animations. Professional narration. Sounds and sound effects. 4 language versions.

What we didn't like: no word highlighting.

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Mermaid Fashion Show - Dress Up a Mermaid Princess Paper Doll in this Dressup Game for Girls (iPhone and iPod Touch Edition)

Mermaid Fashion Show - Dress Up a Mermaid Princess Paper Doll in this Dressup Game for Girls (iPhone and iPod Touch Edition)

Price: free

iPhone

Overall Score: 88/100

version reviewed: 1.1

reviewed:


Best for: Interactive play, Attention & concentration, Creativity, Eye-hand coordination, Personal & social, Understanding of the world

What it is: a 'dress a virtual doll' type app with a 'mermaids' theme, with over a hundred elements (clothes, accessories, hair styles jewellery etc), with illustrations by children's book illustrator Laura Tallardy.

What you do with it: choose and change the character's items of clothing and accessories than name and save your mermaid to the Photo Album on the device.

What we liked: nice illustrations, very easy operation, large range of items to choose from, the 'create a random mermaid' feature.

What we didn't like: no animations. Limited educational value. No sounds. You can't save your projects for later edits.

Appysmarts


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Mermaid Fashion Show - Android version

Mermaid Fashion Show - Android version

Price: free

Android

Overall Score: 88/100

version reviewed: 1.1

reviewed:


Best for: Interactive play, Attention & concentration, Creativity, Eye-hand coordination, Personal & social, Understanding of the world

What it is: a 'dress a virtual doll' type app with a 'mermaids' theme, with over a hundred elements (clothes, accessories, hair styles jewellery etc), with illustrations by children's book illustrator Laura Tallardy.

What you do with it: choose and change the character's items of clothing and accessories than name and save your mermaid to the Photo Album on the device.

What we liked: nice illustrations, very easy operation, large range of items to choose from, the 'create a random mermaid' feature.

What we didn't like: no animations. Limited educational value. No sounds. You can't save your projects for later edits.

Appysmarts


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  • 2
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Little Mermaid Fashion Show

Little Mermaid Fashion Show

Price: 1.99$

iPad

Overall Score: 88/100

version reviewed: 1.1

reviewed:


Best for: Interactive play, Attention & concentration, Creativity, Eye-hand coordination, Personal & social, Understanding of the world

What it is: a 'dress a virtual doll' type app with a 'mermaids' theme, with over a hundred elements (clothes, accessories, hair styles jewellery etc), with illustrations by children's book illustrator Laura Tallardy.

What you do with it: choose and change the character's items of clothing and accessories than name and save your mermaid to the Photo Album on the device.

What we liked: nice illustrations, very easy operation, large range of items to choose from, the 'create a random mermaid' feature.

What we didn't like: no animations. Limited educational value. No sounds. You can't save your projects for later edits.

Appysmarts


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