Counting down from 5 to 1:

Ansel Adams

by Hachette Book Group, Inc.

Price: $6.99

Link: https://itunes.apple.com/US/app/id400716705?mt=8

This app set the new standard for presentation of art on a hand-held device a while back and holds up in 2014 not only because of the amazing variety this app brings to what should be a standard coffee table art book, but the amazing depth and breadth of work from the artist himself. Ansel Adams is a must-have for any lover of the art form.



Notable Features:

Slideshow of 40 Ansel Adams photographs, with optional audio narration, written commentary & synchronized music.

E-card feature, allowing the user to create an e-postcard with one of Ansel’s images, enter a message, and email to friends directly out of the app.

Embedded video excerpts from documentary films about Adams, including the Ric Burns/Sierra Club Emmy Award-winning film for PBS, spanning Adams’ career.

Alice

by Atomic Antelope

Price: $8.99

Link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/alice-for-the-ipad/id354537426?mt=8

When the history of book apps is written, it will doubtlessly include Alice alongside Morris Lessmore and Peter Rabbit as the pioneers into the field of what could be done. While the interface feels a wee bit clunky in 2014, it is impossible to make a list like this without including the original. From the swinging pocket-watch on the first page to helping the Caterpillar smoke his hookah, this is an astonishing way to rediscover a literary classic.

Notable Features:

Incorporates Lewis Carroll’s timeless tale Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland into an interactive setting.

Tilting, shaking, twisting, shake it, turning and jiggling of the iPad makes the characters and settings react.

Both the full 249-page version or an abridged 52-page edition are available.

The Silent History

by Ying Horowitz & Quinn LLC

Price: $1.99 for Volume One

Link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/the-silent-history/id527403914?mt=8

The Silent History is the definition of “groundbreaking,” turning inside-out the definition of what a novel can be. Using serialization, exploration, and collaboration to tell the story of a generation of unusual children — born without the ability to create or comprehend language —Horowitz’s crew tells the story through 120 individual testimonials, short-form fiction which builds to a larger work. There are also hundreds of location-based stories across the U.S. and around the world.



Notable Features:

Geo-targeted stories that can only be unlocked when standing at a particular location.

The Silent History is still evolving, and is expected to keep going for quite some time.

Completely unique structure and interface.

History of Rock

by ditter.projektagentur GmbH & Mark Paytress

Price: $4.99

Link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/history-of-rock/id468650707?mt=8

This comprehensive and lavishly illustrated history of rock music, compiled by renowned rock writer Mark Paytress, brings to life this most popular and vibrant musical genre. YouTube videos and iTunes integration make it possible to view featured musicians in action, or sample song previews simply by clicking on the relevant icon and make IAPs of music you discover along the way. For those of us who love Rock-n-Roll, this app is a tour through all the best moments we love most.



Notable Features:

Divided neatly into eras of rock

Breakout sections introducing relevant pop culture fads and fashions

Timeline establishes a continuous thread connecting all the elements that make up the story of rock music.

NOTE: Some linked videos do not play in all countries.

Black Jack: A Moving Novel

by Sonar Studios & A.R.Witham

Price: Free + IAP

Link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/black-jack-a-moving-novel/id734453929?ls=1&mt=8

Hands-down this is our favorite book app yet. Sonar Studios got it right, using big splashy effects to help tell the story, and a structure and user interface better than anything we’ve seen. But the true genius of Black Jack is the subtle nuance that changes your attitude while you’re reading and you don’t even notice until it has already been happening for five pages. The parchment texture becomes dramatic. A gust of wind breezes by. Snow drifts across the text. It’s as if everything is designed to set a mood; effects are composed in concert with the words to enhance the story and it works in a way that only an iPad can deliver.

The other half that makes Black Jack work is the story. At 600+ pages, Emmy-winner A.R.Witham has written a genuinely engaging character-driven adventure, working on par with Jim Butcher, Patrick Rothfuss or the early works of Neil Gaiman. In the beginning, the story feels a little familiar, but gains momentum and complexity in Chapter 6 and become a tour de force by the epic conclusion in Chapter 20.

Our clear #1 pick, Black Jack: A Moving Novel is the must-have book app of 2014.

Notable Features:

A complete adult/YA novel told in text accentuated by art, music, SFX and animations.

Swag section where the reader can earn additional bonus art by sharing via social media.

Share & Speculate section for discussing the book with other readers and the author.

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