Story Bayou's BRUSH OF TRUTH Rated Four Stars by The iMums

Brush of Truth, an interactive book app for kids 8-12, was rated four stars by The iMums, a children's educational technology review site. Created by Story Bayou, Brush of Truth has been recognized for its appeal to reluctant readers. It is on iPad, iPhone, iPod touch, Android and Kindle Fire.

Brush of Truth, geared to third- through sixth-graders, is the first book app created by Story Bayou, a mom's vision to get tweens to read. Written in second person, "your" voice, Brush of Truth lets the user choose how the action unfolds at critical points in the plot. Brush of Truth has 125 pages of story and colorful illustrations, with 65 decision points and 20 possible endings.

"This is a great storybook that will have your child reading for hours and will allow your child to enjoy the interactivity of a book app," said Alison Hirst of The iMums in the review.

Brush of Truth won the 2012 Media of the Year award in the Interactive Book App category in Creative Child Magazine's Creative Toy Awards. The app was named a "Recommended iPad Book App for Older and Reluctant Readers Ages 8-12" by Digital Storytime, and one of "6 Interactive Book Apps to Get Kids Excited About Reading" by Tecca.

The app tells the story of two tweens who find an enchanted paintbrush. They begin to discover its powers as they go in adventures under the ocean, inside a sand castle, and while rescuing a sea creature.

The app has free downloadable Common Core-aligned lesson plans on the Story Bayou website. "The tie-in with the curriculum will be helpful for parents and teachers as they are working with children on reading skills as well as creative writing, sentences and more," Hirst said. "The app also engages critical thinking skills."

Julie Landry Laviolette, author of Brush of Truth and founder of Story Bayou, is a pioneer in the book app market for offering longer-text story apps. "Book apps are a hybrid of an ebook and a game," she said. "Brush of Truth offers a compelling storyline and a chance for kids to choose what happens next in the story - it's an engaging mix."

Story Bayou creates interactive book app for tweens that are a hybrid of an ebook and a game. Its first book app, Brush of Truth, a reading app for kids 8-12, has been recognized for its appeal to reluctant readers. Brush of Truth was released in February 2012.