Silver Dolphin Books Receives Top Accolades For Little Critter Reading Adventure and Gamepak Apps, Featuring Mercer Mayer's Beloved Character

To Celebrate, Company Launches "Year of Fun" Contest to Win Free Apps and Books

SAN DIEGO, April 11, 2013 /PRNewswire/ — Silver Dolphin Books is quickly receiving top accolades from respected children's educational app review sites for its first two fun-filled interactive apps for young children, The Trip – Little Critter Reading Adventure and The Trip – Little Critter GamePak, featuring Mercer Mayer's beloved character. To celebrate, Silver Dolphin Books has launched the Year of Fun contest, offering entrants the opportunity to win FREE children's apps and books for one year!

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130411/PH92497 )

The Trip – Little Critter Reading Adventure was selected as one of the "30 Best iPhone and iPad Apps This Week" by TheGuardian.co.uk upon release, and has received the following glowing accolades from kids' educational app review sites:

• BestAppsForKids.com awarded it a Five Gold Star Review and wrote: "The beautiful illustrations, fun characters, interactive scenes and in-app games guarantee that this app will provide hours of entertainment." Further: "The learning possibilities on this app are endless" and "You'll be able to hand your tablet over in confidence."
• FunEducationalApps.com praised the app and listed it as one of the month's Top Picks stating: "If you loved Mercer Mayer's Little Critter, then this top pick is just for you." They added: "The quality of The Trip – Little Critter Reading Adventure is top-notch" and "Overall, this app is truly outstanding".
• DigitalStorytime.com wrote: "The educational (and wholesome) focus makes it a reassuring choice for many parents."
• BestAppsForKids.org declared the app to be "a fun-filled educational experience in letters, numbers, shapes, colors, map reading and more!"
• And the iMums.com wrote: "The reading adventure is a really fun version with lots of additional dialog, animations, interactivity and learning games."

Additionally, The Trip – Little Critter GamePak received the following top-notch reviews:

• FunEducationalApps.com declared: "It has earned the status as one of the Top Picks for Fun Educational Apps this month."  They added: "The Little Critter GamePak is a perfect blend of those adorable Little Critters and enough age appropriate games to keep your little one engaged and occupied during extended "stay in your seat" times."  "Don't Go on Vacation Without It."
• FunEducationalApps.com also listed it as one of "15 Highly Recommended Apps Designed to Enhance and Improve Communication and Social Interaction."
• Kindertown.com stated: "Free play sticker areas are very well designed with a blend of discovery as the stickers you choose come to life in different areas of each scene." And: "Overall a fun app filled with a variety of learning games."

Appy Award-winner John R. Sansevere (Little Critter: Where is My Frog) is the producer of both apps, which are available for the iOS, Android, Nook and Kindle platforms.

"All of us at Silver Dolphin Books are delighted about the enthusiastic response to our first children's apps in conjunction with one of the world's most talented children's authors and illustrators, Mercer Mayer," said Jon I. Rosenberg, VP and Publisher of Silver Dolphin Books.  "Some of the most well-respected and top ranked kids' educational app review sites have reviewed our apps and given them two big thumbs up!"

Additionally, Silver Dolphin Books has launched the Year of Fun Contest.  Each week during the month of April, one lucky winner will win every app for kids that Silver Dolphin Books launches in 2013.  Fun new apps will feature Mercer Mayer's Little Critter and Richard Scarry's Busytown characters, plus some all-new characters from the whimsical world of Astro B-1, created by Appy Award-winning producer John R. Sansevere and Erica Farber.  Each winner will also get to select one FREE book for every month in 2013 from the Silver Dolphin Books new releases collection.  The award-winning book publisher is known for its highly interactive formats, such as the Uncover Its (a patented format featuring a plastic model inside the book), and Sounds of the Wild (pop-ups with atmospheric sound), providing age-appropriate material that appeals to young children and earns parental approval.

The Trip – Little Critter Reading Adventure app is based on Mercer Mayer's classic book of the same name and features his incredible original artwork.  A free LITE version of this app is also currently available for the Android, Nook and Kindle platforms, with an iOS version to debut soon.

The Trip – Little Critter Reading Adventure invites children to travel along with Little Critter and his family on an action-packed road trip.  Kids can help Little Critter choose the route the family will take to explore the countryside, the city, the beach and more; fix the car when it breaks down; move a horse stuck in the middle of the road; feed the seagulls; and even find time to grab a hot dog. All this while playing lots of games with Little Sister along the way to pass the time!

Recommended for ages three to seven, the app emphasizes basic pre-school and early elementary curriculum and incorporates an inventory collection and selection feature designed to build critical problem-solving skills; alphabet flashcards hidden on every screen teach and reinforce letter recognition; and successful completion of six puzzles—including sequence and matching games—unlock six collectible gems used to play an arcade-style game.  Other features include text highlighting, visual interactive item clues and professional audio narration and dramatization, which all help to keep non-readers engaged with the story.

Available as an extension to the Reading Adventure app is The Trip – Little Critter GamePak that includes over 50 fun and engaging activities featuring Little Critter, and introduces the Company's new Digistix—interactive, animated stickers with fun sound effects.  Divided into two sections, the GamePak includes five game themes including Dot-to-Dot, Mazes, Matching Pictures and Words and How Many?  In the Digistix section, over 175 digital stickers are available across five game themes, inspiring the imagination and fostering creativity.  In two special beach and camp activities, Digistix stickers that are tapped, dragged and dropped into the scenes react differently depending on where they are placed, enabling kids to create a new adventure every time.

Pricing and Availability:
The Trip – Little Critter Reading Adventure 1.0.1 and The Trip – Little Critter GamePak 1.0.0 are both priced at $3.99 USD (or equivalent in other currencies) and available worldwide exclusively through the iTunes store in the Books category. They are also available from Barnes & Noble, Amazon, and Google Play.

About Silver Dolphin Books
Silver Dolphin Books, an imprint of Baker & Taylor Publishing Group, publishes activity, novelty, and educational nonfiction books for preschoolers to 12-year-olds. Silver Dolphin Books has acquired non-exclusive app publishing rights for iconic children's brands Little Critter and Richard Scarry's Busytown.  The company plans to release a total of six new innovative apps this year for Little Critter, Richard Scarry and an all-new IP, Astro B-1.

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® Mercer Mayer's Little Critter and Mercer Mayer's Little Critter logo are registered trademarks of Orchard House Licensing Company

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