Alexa-Interactive Book Unleashes Amazon Kids+ Original Characters

NOVATO, Calif., Sept. 28, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Just in time for Toy Fair, a book that's more fun than a toy! Amazon, a leader in AI voice technology, and Readyland, the toy development team responsible for generating over $2 billion in retail sales, expand their groundbreaking collaboration with the launch of Owl & Dragon, A Magical Adventure. It's the first-ever interactive book based on Amazon's Echo Dot Kids characters, where readers can actually talk with the characters, play games and join their exciting adventures. Owl & Dragon, A Magical Adventure will be available for pre-order on Amazon starting today, with books shipping next month.

While the toy industry has had massive success with amazing stories that ignite product enthusiasm among consumers, now Amazon and Readyland take this to a whole new level with the most interactive story experience ever.

The Readyland team has unlocked the power of Alexa devices to create a magical adventure that brings the characters to life for the millions of fans of Amazon's Echo Kids devices. Owl & Dragon take flight from their spherical devices and enter kids' imaginations with unlimited immersive experiences and a heart-warming story about bravery and discovery. Each colorful page will captivate children, while hundreds of audio interactions will keep kids engaged with new adventures to discover every time they come back. Kids will also be delighted to recognize the familiar characters' voices that are already available on the Owl and Dragon Echo Dot Kids devices.

"As a company founded on a love of reading, we know the magic really happens when kids transition from learning to read to reading for fun," said Alanna Nielsen, director of Amazon Kids. "Since we launched Owl and Dragon last year, they've become favorite characters for many of our Echo Dot Kids families. What better way to make reading fun than enabling kids to interact directly with the characters they know and love, taking them from device to page, and to a limitless and immersive reading experience."

The already successful collaboration between Amazon and Readyland includes a library of printed books that work with an Alexa device or the free Alexa smartphone app to create an immersive, interactive reading experience. Kids can actually talk with the characters, respond to questions, play games, interact with music and become part of the story, making reading even more magical.

Owl & Dragon, A Magical Adventure, the perfect add-on for an Echo Dot Kids device, invites kids to join exciting adventures as they explore new worlds and ultimately, find their way back home together, with many new lessons learned. Readers can join the lovable characters on an epic adventure with engaging audio surprises, including:

• Find all kinds of curious treasures in Owl's nest, like a banjo that plays lively tunes.
• Create a musical symphony when they choose animal sounds from the creatures living in a pond.
• Travel through a magical portal to identify colorful shadows from glowing flowers.
• Meet a wise old gnome and journey along a maze to find mystical lands.
• Discover fairy friends and find magical dust in Fairy Corner.
• Encourage Dragon to light up the dark cavern, and ultimately, help Owl and Dragon find their way home through the glowing tunnels.

"Our team has developed thousands of successful toys, but never anything as fun, engaging, or ever-changing as this amazing experience," said Joshua Garrett, Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer at Readyland. "Our close collaboration with Amazon and their cutting-edge technologies has allowed us to make a completely groundbreaking experience for kids."

"As a play and education expert, my mission is to reignite the spark between play and learning. Readyland is the perfect solution to keep children entertained and engaged throughout their literacy development," says Rebecca Horrace, Ed.D., founder of Playful Insights and editor of Play in Education.

Once you have a Readyland book, it's easy to set up parental permissions for the Alexa skill, and dive into the interactive reading experience. 

About Readyland
Readyland LLC is a team of innovators who integrate printed materials with smart speaker and voice assistant applications, transforming them into new and magical experiences, and evolving content into immersive, interactive audio experiences. Readyland has a deep passion for bringing new and magical experiences to audiences of all ages. With a 20-year track record of breakthrough consumer products, they've contributed to thousands of products for the biggest entertainment, tech, and family brands in the world.

SOURCE Readyland LLC