#23 Kids Like eBooks for Summer Reading

     Welcome to a new audience from Tunisia!  You represent the 54th country reported on the stats page of one or both of my blogs. 

     (If you are interested, my other blog can be located by clicking on the following link:
               www.jumpup2chapterbooks.blogspot.com .)

     I will publish a list of my readers' countries in a future post.  While tracking them with pins on a world map, I have become increasingly amazed at the scope of our shared interest in children's literacy.

     The title of this post, "Kids Like eBooks for Summer Reading" contains a couple of false assumptions, and I apologize for that. 

     First, all of my readers are not currently anticipating summer--Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, and Brazil in the southern hemisphere, are likely looking forward to winter instead.

     Secondly, the school schedules of our young readers vary widely from place to place, even within the USA. So not everyone is facing decisions about what the children should do with a long break from school work. 

     Stick with me anyway.  This is important.

    Reading is reading, and my objective is to help keep kids interested in it, regardless of their school vacations or which season of the year they may find themselves.

     Technology offers some new tools that children find very attractive, and these might serve to improve your child's appetite for good literature.

     Of course thoughtful parents and teachers may have some legitimate concerns about kid's access to the internet on these devices. I have addressed these worries in a previous post  on this blog (#8 Parental Controls for Ebooks). 

     I also expect that many of you have viewed the cost of the eReaders and eBooks as a hurdle.  While it is convenient to have an ordered book delivered instantly, the price of an eBook is usually higher than a print one from a free public or school library--unless you figure in the cost of gas to get there and back (because you are required to return the book when it is finished). That kind of helps to even out the debate.

     And the price of those basic electronic readers has continued to fall. Watch for bargains, especially around holiday time.  They are out there.  

     Apps for eBooks are also available for your existing home computers, ipads, or smart phones.  (I see many kids today with very nice phones, and the most of the Apps are free.)

     The retail prices of eBooks are often half the price of printed books, and many children's classics are even free. (See my posts #5, #6, and #7). However, some prices of bestselling books are controlled by their publishers, and these may be higher, though still not the full price of print books. 

     Major eBook sellers, such as Amazon and Barnes & Noble offer lending and sharing programs. Some of these have a membership fee, but some do not.  

     But do they have illustrations for the younger children? you might be wondering. 

     Of course they do, and not just for the little guys.  Graphic novels are available with a comic book format, but the colored illustrations will require a reading device that displays in color. Otherwise the illustrations are in black and white only.

     Audio editions with professional readers and sound effects are sold for many eBooks, too. Children can read along in the printed text, then after a while parents can turn the sound off, and the children can read the books by themselves--sort of like training wheels on a bike. 

     So don't let your children play video games on the new technology all summer (or in whatever season you are currently experiencing).  

     Investigate electronic reading, and then introduce this new, exciting format to your children.

     And while you are at it, take it for a ride, yourself. You might enjoy the convenience of having 30,000 books in your backpack or handbag when you find yourself waiting in an airport or doctor's office.


     

#22 Topper's Book for Nook

     Topper was having some trouble, and I knew he would have to go into the vet clinic. 

     This was unusual because our spoiled kitty usually sees a special veterinarian who makes house calls--mostly because he throws such a fit when he has to ride in the car.  

     However, everything indicated that this problem would require some lab work. He had stopped eating, drinking water, and was making repeated trips to his litter box.

     He insisted in a loud "Meow" that I do something about it, so I reluctantly shoved him into his hated carrier and took him in.  We came home with two weeks worth of antibiotics--pills to be administered after eating by tossing down his throat twice a day.

     The medicine didn't settle very well in his little cat stomach though, and Topper soon began to be sick at about 3:30 nearly every night.  First I reassured him with appropriate sympathy. Then I had to disinfect spots on the carpet and by the time I finished with that job, I was wide awake. 

     I knitted a lot in those cold, dark hours.  

     At the end of two weeks, Topper went in for a recheck, and the lab report declared that he was cured (though he may have used up two or three of his nine lives).

     ...Cured of everything, that is, but his mistrust and anger--all aimed at me, his faithful nurse. Go figure!

     The photo above was taken during that period of time. At first glance he appears to be sweet and relaxed, but look again.  His eyes are blazing with fury.

*****

     I am happy to report that Topper finally recovered his gentle personality and resumed his job as "Author's Muse" while I published his illustrated ebook for Barnes and Noble's Nook readers. (It was already available on Amazon for their Kindles.) 

     The ebook has a reading level of 4.3 and is entitled In the Mind of a Cat by Lynda.  It sells for $2.99, and is available for computers as well as many mobile devices.

     In gratitude for your support and continued interest, I thank you and Topper thanks you.

     Until next time...

     Please keep reading!