Ebooks for children?

[wyndslash]

So I was browsing through Amazon last night, trying to find the best edition of Winnie the Pooh stories, and I noticed that some of them have been Kindle-fied.

But why? I mean, why would you deprive kids of such beautiful hardbound books by replacing it with an electronic version? *balks*And of course, sometimes the artwork isn't translated as beautifully on those gadgets. I'm a big lover of my kindle (it sleeps with me every night in my bed ) but I know that if I do have a kid, it'll be a great excuse to get all those children's books without getting labeled negatively myself haha.

Yes, I realize the other arguments such as price, space, blah blah. But I would like to hear other opinions that deal with other things

[odiakkoh]

I do like the idea of Nook for Kids books available for Nook Color and iPad but it'll be a cold day in hell before I let my e-ink anywhere near my 2yr old lol. I hear about how well my friends' kids behave while being read a story and I am jealous. I'm perfectly happy to buy him used pbooks though.

When he gets into chapter books though, I don't see the difference between him reading a pbook or an ebook.

[Elfwreck]

Ebooks don't replace the beautiful, nicely-bound save-it-forever hardcovers. They replace the Scholastic Book Club paperbacks that get dropped in the soup. And if you have the nice hardcover, having the illustrated ebook edition lets the child take a copy of a much-loved favorite to camp or an overnight trip (presuming the kid is mature enough to be trusted with an ebook reader).

One of the growing problems with ebooks is lack of support for the YA market; there are preschool ebooks (presumably being read on a parent's iPad), and adult ebooks, but the market for 10-16 year-olds is almost nonexistent. (In part, because they can't *buy* ebooks; without a credit card, you can't even set up an account at most sites.)

[wyndslash]

@odi: yeah, i understand that about chapter books.

@elfwreck: ah, well, i asked because so far the random opinions i've read here were either all or nothing; pbook or ebook. i certainly would not mind getting my future kid both versions, although the beautiful hardcover might be found more often in mommy's room, lol

[odiakkoh]

Originally Posted by wyndslash

@odi: yeah, i understand that about chapter books.

@elfwreck: ah, well, i asked because so far the random opinions i've read here were either all or nothing; pbook or ebook. i certainly would not mind getting my future kid both versions, although the beautiful hardcover might be found more often in mommy's room, lol

Haha when it comes to certain children's classics you'll find the ebook, paperback and hardcover in this house. One for me, one for the kids and one to put up on the shelf :P

I'm not an all or nothing girl, more of a little bit of everything girl.

[elemenoP]

Originally Posted by Elfwreck

One of the growing problems with ebooks is lack of support for the YA market; there are preschool ebooks (presumably being read on a parent's iPad), and adult ebooks, but the market for 10-16 year-olds is almost nonexistent.

Says who? My public library has 958 YA ebooks. I read some YA, and I haven't seen any new releases that did not also have an ebook release.

eP

[wyndslash]

Originally Posted by odiakkoh

Haha when it comes to certain children's classics you'll find the ebook, paperback and hardcover in this house. One for me, one for the kids and one to put up on the shelf :P

I'm not an all or nothing girl, more of a little bit of everything girl.

aw man, i may have to do that someday as well i always get weird looks when i buy beautiful hardcovers of children's books by myself lol

@elem: YA Books always confuse me. it seems that there are several YA-books that aren't so YA. i need a better definition of what qualifies as YA D;

[elemenoP]

As for myself, my daughter is interested in my reader, but I have purposely avoided downloading any ebooks for her, because the reader is Mommy's toy, not hers.

However, I can totally see how children's books on Nook Color or iPad could be *great.* Read alouds, touch a word to hear it read, etc. That could be very useful support for a beginning reader.

eP

[purple_fishy]

I am a dual copy kind of person. I have been building up my daughter's book collection, now that she is starting to read a little more independently, I have been loading up children's classics such as Little Women, A Little Princess, and A Secret Garden onto my Nook as well as getting copies to sit on the bookshelf. I love ebooks but not for shelf saving reasons. I like having shelves that are full to the brim with beloved books.

[speakingtohe]

I think it depends on what the child reads and budget permitting, how they want to read.

Some children read Dickens at 5 and Shakespeare at 7. Others never even enjoy a comic book.

Images from beautifully published books add to the enjoyment for some and are skipped over by others.

I have taught a 9 year old girl (my employer's daughter) how to download library books for her Sony and she and her mother are very happy about that.

Helen

[Sweetpea]

Kids these days grow up with electronic gadgets. And they tend to be more careful with them than their would have at their age.

Having said that, at times it's easier to have an electronic version over the hardback. But for the 0-10 year olds, I'd go for a colour reader, simply because they're more image oriented. For 10+, which is when they start reading picture-less books, any reader would be fine and the need for a tactile experience decreases. At least, that's how I see it...

[Nahgem]

Originally Posted by elemenoP

I read some YA, and I haven't seen any new releases that did not also have an ebook release.

eP

I haven't either, and that's honestly surprised me, because I've expected there to be a smaller market for YA ebooks for precisely the reason Elfwreck mentioned. But it could be due to the types of YA I read -- mostly fantasy and paranormal romance, which tend to sell like hotcakes and have adult cross-over.

As to what is YA, I've always loosely classified it as "books with a teen protagonist that deal with teen issues and/or were written with teens in mind as the target audience."

i always get weird looks when i buy beautiful hardcovers of children's books by myself lol

Ignore the weird looks! Good lit is good lit regardless of what age level it's marketed to.

[Sweetpea]

Originally Posted by Nahgem

Ignore the weird looks! Good lit is good lit regardless of what age level it's marketed to.

Couldn't agreee more what that! I'd even say if a book is written so that both young and old can enjoy it, it must be a very good book

[Jowi]

I doubt anyone who is enough of a reader to even own a Kindle (or other ereader) would have ZERO hard copies of childrens books for their kids and ONLY buy ebooks. It's not an all or nothing kind of thing. Some people might prefer to have a few kids books on their device for convenience and have the hard books at home.

Another thing is kids see their parents reading on the Kindle and then they WANT a book of their own to read on the Kindle. This argument is like hating a Wii because "Video games are EVIL because kids don't play outside anymore!" ... you CAN have a Wii and it could be played with once a week (or less) ****AND**** play outside

[ApK]

Both my kids have a full bookshelf in their rooms. Some hand-me-down classics from my own childhood shelf, some autographed hard covers from authors they've met, lots of gift books and books they've picked out in the store.

My oldest also has use of the Sony PRS 350 ereader, because...well, the bookshelf is full, and even used DTBs cost money, and I can load up the 350 with scores of things for him try for free or cheap.
He likes the reader, but he has also clearly expressed preference for some of the nicely illustrated editions of the stories in the bookstores and the library over the b/w ink versions he had already read.

My youngest doesn't read independently yet, but has access to an iPod which has several story books that can either read aloud to her or giver her other ways to interact, which she enjoys in addition to being read to at bed time from her full shelf.

I read something here recently about the benefits of paper page turning for young kids starting out in reading...the tactile experience, the efficiency of page flipping, the cues to story structure from the physical sense of the beginning and end of a book...and I believe most of it. So my kids have both.

BTW, I wouldn't mind more tips for free/cheap stuff for an 8-year old boy who loves mysteries.

ApK

p.s. I think the Wii is great. My kids get more exercise and excitement jumping around with those controllers then they do just sitting and watching TV (or reading....). It's great to have a variety of stuff to do, especially over a hot summer. Ride bikes, go to swimming, read, watch movies, play games. I could only see any of them as bad if any of them were done to the exclusion of all the others.