Axel Scheffler's Flip Flap Farm

PreS-Gr 1—In Farm, a combination of colorful art, verse, and silly play is sure to win favor with young children and some older ones as well. The object of the game is to create animals; a swipe to screen's top panel allows viewers to choose the upper half of a creature's body and a swipe to the lower panel, the feet.While combinations can yield accurate pictures of barnyard denizens, the fun is in mixing the features to create new ones. Daft blends—a "shicken" (half sheep, half chicken); a "tabbit" (half turkey, half rabbit); a "moat" (half mouse, half goat)—or any of the other 121 possibilities ensure tons of fun. Rhyming poems for each creature and appropriate animal sounds will help kids identify the critters. Children can choose to read the verses or listen to the narration. There is no end per se to the app, just more combinations to be tried.The latest addition to the series, Flip Flap Safari, employs the same enthusiastic child narrator. The animals featured are those found on the African continent, from giraffes and elephants to warthogs and zebras, combining to make such fanciful creations as "wartaffes" and "zebants." The series focuses on producing one quality activity, fueled by the power of users' imaginations and their sense of humor. Companion books (Nosy Crow, 2013 and 2014) and trailers are available for both apps.—Cindy Wall, Southington Public Library, CT