I love the concept and when it works it is great. I am not as good at reading stories as my wife. So this help me read to my kid. The problem is it's constantly getting stuck. You have to constantly stop the sounds and restart it. It really takes away from it. Fix this and the subscription is worth it.
This app is a great addition to my class read alouds. The sound effects from this app helped bring stories in my classroom to life. There is a wide selection of books and ebooks sorted by topics. I wish there was a way to sort by grade/age or if there's an indicator somewhere (amount of words, pages)
I started using Novel Effect in 2019 with the classes visiting our school library. It was a wonderful tool and the kids loved it when I used it. During the early pandemic days, I wasn't doing read alouds, so imagine my surprise when I returned to the app to find I was now limited to five experiences a months! What happened? Why not just limit new releases instead of this bait and switch? Disappointed and not sure if it is worth premium just to continue use.
I love this idea! I've just started using this after seeing a recommendation on TikTok and it seems really cool! We already have a few of the books which is convenient. The app library has a lot of well known books and it makes reading very entertaining. We read goodnight moon, we're going on a bear hunt, and time for bed. Will definitely be recommending this app to everybody!
hidden charges. I ended my free subscription before the the date that I was to be charged for a full year, but today, surprise surprise, I was just charged $50 for a full year, and now I can't seem to figure how to get my refund. I don't intend on using this app. Google play won't work with me on this, and I haven't from anyone from NovelEffect yet. Free trial or not, they will get $50 from you. don't trust them.
This app is simply indispensable. If you enjoy reading aloud, making the voices and immersing yourself and your listeners in the story then it is worth its money. we love it.
This app would be so wonderful if it worked. I've tried on two phones now with a paid subscription (which I regret) and my son and I cannot get through any of the interactive stories without it glitching and stopping the whole thing. The read aloud work a little better but we've struggled a bit with them as well. It's all such a cool idea, I hope the designers can fix the bugs and just make it work.
I use this app multiple times a day as an elementary school librarian. It never fails to help grab the student's attention and hold it during story time. Even our upper grades (5-6) love to hear the stories with the music and sound effects added. I can't recommend this app enough! For optimal usage, I connect a Bluetooth speaker to my phone and set the speaker a short distance away to prevent the sounds from overwhelming the input on my phone. Keeps everything flowing just right!
The app doesn't work very well. Constantly having to repeat sentences or words. I have to hold the phone to my mouth and speak very loudly which is difficult with a toddler and book in my hands and also defeats the purpose of quieting down for bedtime. We end up paying more attention to the app instead of the book. Now they want to charge to use it. I put up with all the glitches when it was free, but it's definitely not worth paying so much for it. Update: app has only gotten worse.
The only problem with the payment is that it promises a 1 week free trial. Decide to do it and it instantly made me pay without the trial. It doesn't matter because it promises that it makes stories for little ones feel more alive. My 6 year old is obsessed with a book and is now even more obsessed because of this wonderful app. Loved narrating with the sound effects and voice lines!
