Reading
Novel Effect
Kids hear music and sound effects chime in as a picture book is read out loud.
Novel Effect seems designed to turn read-aloud time into a small performance. A reader, grown-up or child, picks a book, either a print copy from the shelf or an ebook inside the app, and starts its soundscape. As the words are spoken, the app listens and cues music, sound effects and character voices, so a storm rumbles when the page mentions thunder and a dragon roars on cue. The maker describes more than 1,000 soundscapes for popular titles, from board books to graphic novels, alongside hundreds of ebooks. Because the sounds follow the reader’s voice, kids just learning to read may find a fresh reason to read aloud themselves. Phones and tablets are supported, and a web version runs on computers. Families whose favorite books lack a soundscape may find the ebook shelf a handy place to start.
- Ages
- Ages 12 and under
- Works on
- iPhone and iPad app; Android app; Web browser
- Topics
- Reading, Music, Early learning
- Languages
- English
- Listed
- 2026-10-18
What kids do
- Read a picture book aloud with a soundscape
- Hear sound effects follow the story
- Pair a print book from home
- Read along with an ebook inside the app
Who it suits
Ages 12 and under. The publisher provides this age guidance.
Notes for parents
It works with print books families may already own, provided the title has a soundscape. A Bluetooth speaker seems to make the music and effects feel bigger.
What you need
- iPhone, iPad, Android device or computer
- A matching print book or in-app ebook
More Reading
- Epic – Kids' Books & Reading: A digital library where children browse stories and nonfiction, listen to Read-To-Me books and audiobooks, and look up words with an audio dictionary.
- Reading.com: A parent and child go through scripted phonics lessons together, followed by decodable stories and practice games.
- Reading Eggs: Pre-reading, first reading, systematic phonics and later comprehension are split into separate programs aimed at different ages.
- Teach Your Monster to Read: Children design a monster and take it through games that match letters to sounds, blend words and read sentences.
- Hooked on Phonics Learning: Guided reading activities come with an ebook library meant to go alongside the lessons.
- Teach Monster: Reading for Fun: Recipes, signs and instructions are the reading material in a village adventure where helping characters earns books for a monster’s shelf.
- Vooks: Animated storybooks with narration, where each word is highlighted as it is read aloud.
- Endless Reader: Animated words are built letter by letter, dropped into short sentence puzzles and then acted out in a little scene.