Bean's Night

PreS-Gr 1—In this nighttime-story-with-a-twist, a cat sporting a red collar snoozes when the sun is out, and awakens as the moon rises. Based on the board book by the same title (HMH, 1998), the app follows the playful, nocturnal creature as it chases a mouse throughout the night. At story's end, after an active evening, cat and mouse settle down to sleep, as daylight peeks through the window. The bold, flat illustrations feature midnight blue, pink, and splashes of green. Animations, including a switch of a tail, a twitch of whiskers, and animals that leap, scramble, and dive across the screen, will delight young children. The large-print text is highlighted as it is read in the "Read to Me" mode, but youngsters may choose to tackle this "just-right" text on their own ("Sun's up. Bean sleeps. Night comes. Bean creeps.").—Daryl Grabarek, School Library Journal