The sun is warm, the heat is on, and it finally feels like summer. Moms everywhere are finally able to lay back in their chaises, sipping iced tea, as their stir crazy children romp in the 80 degree weather, getting grass cuts on their knees instead of rug burns on their elbows. Summer truly is liberating.

During those cooped up winter months and the rainy season that just passed, or even during those lazy hazy summer days, kids often have so much pent up energy that too much time gets wasted in front the television, or else they drag their heels, that familiar strained expression on their face as they whine, maybe cry for mother’s attention. Mom, however, is often too busy to devote constant entertainment to her children, cleaning diapers and kitchen countertops and cooking meals, and so children are often left to their own devices – somehow this always includes something destructive.

For children who are not yet old enough to read alone, The Little Red Hen by Kidztory acts as a narrated storybook, providing an entertaining, educational outlet that encourages the act of reading. The beautiful illustrations and the easy page flipping are just as captivating as a book, and even a child’s voice is heard narrating the story clearly, to further prompt your child to sound out the words on the page. For time-strapped mothers, having The Little Red Hen gives your child the reading time he needs on his own terms, making him more autonomous, and all on a small, portable iPhone that fits easily in his hands. Even better, The Little Red Hen story is a classic, passed down and interpreted from Russian folk tales, and makes not only for good reading, but good morals and good character-modeling for your child.

Your child may choose to have the story read to him in either English, Spanish or Cantonese (to cover the main languages); or, should he be feeling extra confident, he can choose to read the story all by himself, a silent option that also works for when mother decides to read for him. The story is told in landscape mode, with very cute and vivid, choppy modern illustrations that actually animate as each page is flipped. The story actually becomes more dynamic with the iPhone than with a book, as your child watches the little red hen walk across screen, the cat’s whiskers twitch, and the wheat grow after being watered. It’s all so adorable, if I must gush myself. A tinkling bell is heard each time you flip a page, and, much like Classics, an animated page mimics the turning of a page.

Hopefully, KidzStory will create more narrated storybooks, because – particularly in this Go Diego! dominated day and age with two working parents – helping your child read by interacting with the story can sometimes be more stimulating than books alone. Nurture the budding reader, develop his autonomy, and mothers, just relax by the poolside and watch him learn.