Books on Screen — TV Tie-Ins

I can see the value in mixing in some media tie-in books, but I still *cringe* at the steady diet of TV-driven ideas our kids get.

We often get books with licensed characters for review, but we don't review them. As you suggest, parents recognize the product and can decide whether it's a character who is their child's friend. There isn't anything new we could offer.

Because we work with at-risk readers, most of whom don't own any books, these are books they treasure. So we save them for just that audience.

I'm a little torn on the TV tie-in characters in books. I can see how it is frustrating for parents to always have their kids toys, books, ideas, play dictated by the tv. On the other hand, my son loves Elmo and Cookie Monster, but he doesn't see Sesame Street more than twice every six months. He just likes them and they have good characteristics that I wouldn't mind exposing him to.

Being a former kindergarten teacher I totally hear what you are saying. I would say that 95% of my books are what I would consider good literature, but I always had a few books that were given to me by students that were often tv based. As a mother, I've picked up a few tv based books for my 22 month old because it's choosing something that he can already relate to. Will I continue to do this as he gets older??? Probably not, but I say if it gets a child into reading… go for it!

At this point I give my daughter free reign on what she chooses to read – any interest in books is a good thing! We don't have TV here, so it hasn't been a really big issue for us, but she loves seeing something in a book that she has seen elsewhere, or vice versa – like watching a hippo video and then reading a book about hippos.

I was skeptical at first, but my 21 month old daughter loves Seasme Street and Curious George. We try to limit the amount of tv that she watches, but she's always loved books. I've noticed that lately she been drawn more to the books that have tv characters from the shows we allow her to watch. It's changed my opinion about these books…maybe they aren't so bad after all!

I"m torn on this issue- my daughter is 5 and I'm starting to tell her, "okay, no barbie or princess books, you have SO MANY!" when we go to the library. There's a lot of quality kid lit out there that doesn't have tv characters.

On the other hand, my son is not much interested in being read to yet, UNLESS it's the Backyardigans. His other favorite is Wow Wow Wubbzy, so I'd love to win that.

We have just started letting our daughter (15 mo) watch TV and she doesn't seem to be hooked on any one show yet. But she loves books too! We read constantly and I love it when she brings me a books and says "read!"

Thanks for the giveaway!

I used to feel the same way and tried to avoid TV character books, but what ever gets them interested in books is fine by me!

We limit the TV that our 2 1/2 year old daughter is allowed to watch to just a few different shows (her favorites are Dora, Diego, and Backyardigans). When it comes to books, she does love the Dora and Diego books that she has been given as gifts, and I do not mind because they do seem pretty educational…it has helped her learn her colors, numbers, alphabet, etc. She loves any type of book, though, and does not insist on reading just those based on TV characters, so I think we have a good balance.

I used to be unsure about the books until I saw how well they worked with kids that were reluctant readers. While completing my masters degree in Literacy I often had children that did not want to read anything. I found books about characters that they knew from television and they were instantly engaged.

My oldest son, now in kindergarten, likes any and all books. If we go into a store sure goes right for the character books, but easily is convinced to purchase something else. With that said we have our fair share of character books at home and both of my boys love making the connection with television and reading. Of course I have to say that the new character books are so much better these days since they have lessons to learn in them.

great post! I too had a hard time with TV-tie in books for my daughter, but you are right…the kids love them! My daughter (6yrs) finally GOT that she could read on her own when she picked up a Blue's Clues reader and started looking through it. She suddenly ran up to me and said 'mom! I know what all the words are in this book!' I just don't know if she would have been engaged enough in any old book to figure that out herself.

I think that if the character books make a child more interested in reading, then more power to them! And for children that do not watch T.V they get to have a little glimpse at the characters through the books instead. My daughter watches T.V. but loooooooooves books, and some of her favorites are those based on the T.V shows. She loves Wubbzy so it would be great to win. Thanks for the giveaway!

I think having character books can be helpful because I know our daughter likes taking her "friends" with her when we go shopping or wherever. I may not always like the books she picks out at the library, and I try to steer her in the right direction of books I would like her to look at (being almost 4, she cannot read yet). I always have the final say, but whatever books we bring home – character or not – we MAKE educational. At this stage, we have been learning letters, colors, shapes, etc. These things are available in any of the books available.

Granted, our daughter may be younger than some of the other reader's children of this blog, but I think with the discretion of each parent any book can be made teachable. We can ask questions of the pictures, ask what the child would do differently in the same situation, ask why certain things happened during different parts of the story, etc. Any book can be a learning experience.

Thank you so much for the great giveaway!

If you ask my 6 yo son, he'll say he LOVES SpongeBob and ScoobyDoo… even though, without cable in our house, he's never seen the cartoons. He got to know the characters through the appealing and easy 8×8 inch books on the spinning rack in the bookstore.

They're not my favorite kind of books, they're fluff – but, hey, I need some fluff reading in my life too. I don't choose character books for my kids but I don't say no when they want to choose them, either.

We don't know Wubbzy, but I bet my 22-month old would love him.

Reading books with my daughters favorite characters gets her interested. After she gets settled down then we can read a "good" book. So she gets what she wants and the enrichment I want for her.

I am all for kids reading whatever they are interested in (and I'm a teacher too). My kids have loved pokemon for years, it got my son to read because I couldn't read the game for him all day and he figured it out on his own and then applied to other reading. The love of reading is the end result and the path taken isn't important.

When I was pregnant I made alot of lists of what not to do. You can guess how that went, when the time actually came! TV characters were a pet peeve of mine but when Blues Clues made my son take interest in the toilet, I changed my mind. I still avoid the channels with commercials, but if Wubbzy spikes my sons interest in books, I'm all for it!

I don't mind books from tv shows. My oldest doesn't like to read, but one thing she did always like our the books from tv shows. If she reads at all, I'm happy

We've been trying not to let our son watch TV until he's two (which is only a few more months now). Character books are another way to enjoy the stories without watching them on TV.

I have a 2 and 3 year old the love Wubbzy and love books. I havent seen the character books besides Dora and Deigo so if i could win that would be great but if not i will have to search for them. I just know they would love books based on their favorite shows as they love anything Dora and Deigo

We don't our grandson watch too mcuh TV but we read to him many books a day, including Wubbzy. would love to be a winner.

I haven't seen Wubbzy but I bet my kids would love it.

I think the TV tie-in books are a great way to make a reluctant reader take more interest. My son has always been more interested in a book if it featured characters he's familiar with already.

We have a Bob the Builder book and a few Backyardigans books and honestly, they all seem pretty disjointed to me. The fact that the book is trying to cover a whole episode in a few short pages is pretty obvious to me but my kids seem to like these books anyway.

I don't mind most of the tv tie-ins. If I would let them watch the show on occasion I let them have the book. We did recieve some sponge bob books (they were exposed by their slightly older cousin) that I did not read for them, The rest Dora, diego, elmo, disney princesses, if they love the character they love the book. Any reading is better than none.

I like the idea of TV tie-in characters in book.

I think it helps to develop interest in reading if a child is presented with a book that has a character that he likes.

Thank you!

janetfaye (at) gmail (dot) com

I also didn't like TV tie-in books at first but my son has gravitated toward them. But he loves any books, so as long as there's a good mix of regular children's books and TV books, I don't mind. As others have said, anything that gets a kid interested in books is fine with me!

I think they're great! Anything that gets my kids into reading is OK by me.

Tale of Tails DVD and book set is something my son would love. Great review and thanks!

I'd love to win this for my "Grandkid Library" here. I don't have any TV related character books, but your post has me rethinking that. Thank you for opening my eyes.

My daughter is just starting to take an interest in television. I'd love to win this to give her something fun to watch in the mornings as we get started for the day. Thanks for the chance! m_huston(at)hotmail(dot)com

Depends on the show.

I WOULD LOVE TO WIN THIS FOR MY KIDS.

I think they are fine as long as it gets kids interested in reading.

If the books are well done, they can be a fabulous way to get kids interested in and comfortable with reading!

They are good if they can get kids want to read.

I think it's great if it makes the kids want to read!

Well, we don't have cable TV, so I'm not sure how valid my opinion is going to be. Generally speaking, I would say that I am not in favor of it. But I think it depends on the show, doesn't it? If it is a quality program that engages your child and excites his mind, then really, what's the harm in it? The key, as in most things, is just to be involved with your kid's activities. That way, if he has any questions, you are right there to explain your, and presumably your huband's, point of view.
Alicia Webster
5webs@comcast.net

We don’t have cable or satellite, so we don’t get all the cool kid’s channels. I found some Sesame Street books at a second-hand store that I really like. And I don’t think there’s anything wrong with tying the two together, if it works, good!

I think the two go hand in hand. Offering tie ins to a tv show or movie actually benefits both. One can get you interested in the other.

My kids really love books based on TV characters, too. And we don't have cable. I think they are fine for young kids, but I am trying to branch out with my six year old. At this age he can tell me what types of books he likes and I can find them for him to read– and they are TV character books.

I think it is totally cool.

well most of the time I do not like them but have to say it got one of my eldest children to really start reading more- so I am in the middle

I love books with characters from Noggin & Playhouse Disney. My daughter gets so excited about the characters and we end up reading them over & over again. We don't have any Wubbzy stuff yet, but both my girls love the show on t.v.

I have no problem with it generally as long as I know it is a show for their age level. I dislike them being introduced to shows by books which contain inappropriate content for a young child.

I likehaving the kids have their own imagination picture the characters so whne they see the character on tv, I think it takes away some.

I don't have a problem with it. Just as long as my kids are learning the good stuff that all I want.

itr's ok

I think it helps kids to generalize different ideas that they may have seen on tv into books into real life. Just as long as it is used properly anything can be educational. TV for babysitting is always a bad idea, but I try to sit and watch with my daughter and comment on the show as it goes and we talk about the story later and how it relates to something in real life when she is having down time to help with remembering and generalizing.

hi!!!

I think it's a good idea to have the same story in two mediums. I believe seeing it gives a child a better understanding of the story when it's read and it also holds the child's interest more because it's familiar and they can picture the scene in their minds.

I can see how these books help not only at risk readers but kids who don't really like to read. Anything that gets kids reading is a good thing.

Too much tv is bad for anyone.
I never turn mine on anymore.
This book would be a very nice win!

I too feel like the last poster there is so much bad that is mild and I have no problem with it

I too found myself cringing anytime my daughters would pick up a book from the library that was Dora or other tv related. But before I told them no, I realized that it was only because I, did not want to read Dora. I needed to cater to their interest. After all that's what going to the library was all about.

i think tv tie in books help get kids (and adults) interested in reading

When my son watches TV and get interested in a character, and the show is derived from a book, he will then want to read the book.

This is a great idea my niece and nephew would love this

My boys would love it.

Young students in my classroom who were struggling readers were often drawn to the T.V. tie in books that I kept in my classroom library. The books had characters that were already familiar and well liked. They helped the children feel more confident about themselves as readers. These books served as a springboard to other books.

On the same note, my youngest daughter just turned two, and loves to sit and "read" while her older sisters are reading. She is fascinated by the character "Wubbzy", and I've been trying to find books with that character for her. (Sad story: I actually passed up on my first chance to get a Wubbzy book back several months ago. We were at a book fair and my oldest daughter asked if the baby liked Wubbzy. I had never heard of the character back then and when I saw the book I asked her, "So what is it, like a tater tot with a tail?" Then I just walked away. If only I'd known!)

Wow, I never heard of these before. I love TV and would like books about tv, so yea, sounds good to me.

I think that anything that makes a child want to read is a good thing.

I never heard of these, but they sound interesting.

They are pretty cool. THis is the 1st time I hear about them. If it can get a child interested in reading, why not.

I know it is commercialism at it's best but I don't mind if my san wants to read a Blues Clues or Backyardigans or whatever book. At least it keeps him reading!

I have always bought my daughter books I enjoyed as a child. No that shes older she has been really into all the princess books. I feel if it encourages them to want to read then they are good.

Anything that gets kids to read is good.

anythings that gets a child to read is good

it's a great way to encourage reading!

I have to admit I have the same oppinion of books linked to TV show's as you did. Maybe I need to rethink it.

We love Wow Wow Wubbzy in our house. My son would love the DVD and I'd love to see if the books are as good as they sound.

i think its great it if is proper age reading material, with proper "grammar" and helps kids to love books more!

TV tie in books are allright, they develop the characters further sometimes.

like to win this

great way to encourage reading

Love it !

I love TV tie-in books. My son loves to watch watch TV, especially Wow Wow Wubbzy. My son also loves reading books, especially books that have characters from his favorite cartoons. I know that my son would love reading Wow Wow Wubbzy books if we had them. If it weren't for books that included characters from TV, I am not sure my son would even be interested in reading. I do know they make those Ready- To- Read books with Diego, Dora, Backyardigans, but do they make them with Wow Wow Wubbzy. That would be great if there are.

Thank you for having this! I love these books as my daughter loves these shows. She is 2 and any book she wants to read I jump on the chance for her to show any interest in books. Thank you!
tatertot374@sbcglobal.net

When they are well done, I think these tie-ins are great. They encourage children to read.

great idea .

GREAT LEARNING TOOL FOR CHILDREN!

Great contest

I admit to buying a few but they always seem like a bit of a cop-out to me. I much prefer the classics BUT anything that gets your child to read is worth it.

ready for some new entertainment

I think these tv-tie-in books are good because kids who like the shows will be encouraged to read these books
jceko77@yahoo.com

I think it is great to tie the books and learning together for the tv characters. Anything to get kids excited and wanting to learn more -I'm for it!!
My 2 1/2yr old son has learned so much from these noggin and nickjr characters. lessons on every day situations like feelings, listening and school activities like abc's and counting.
He loves Wow Wow Wubbzy from the start and repeats what the characters say and do.

I can see some value to continuing the interest in the story line in a book.

As long as it's encouraging reading..I dont mind. My kids watch tv, *gasp* and guess what? They all love to read! And my two oldest are well above grade level (my 7th grader is reading at a 12th grade level) so it hasn't hurt them at all!!

anythign to get 'em to read

I feel they're going to watch TV anyway. Or hear their friends talking about the different shows & characters. Really, I think any method that encourages reading is good.
When my brother & I were kids, my grandfather used to give us those big hulking Reader's Digest Condensed books. But, he also provided up with money for comic books when we went on vacation.
My brother and I always read many grade levels above average.
I think the trick is to encourage reading no matter what the format.

I am all for any kind of books that encourage kids to read them.

Do not care for TV but Love anything that makes kids want to read….

If a book has good content and my kids like it, I do not care if it is TV based or not. My kids have a wide variety of books, and read a lot of different books from the library. I let them pick out some, but I also look for books that I think they will like and that I want them to read. For example, I introduced my son to the Henry and Mudge books by Cynthia Rylant, and he loves them. Once he read one, he would look for more in the series at the library. I think that as long as you are exposing your kids to all kinds of books, they will be fine!

I know any thing with wow wow wubbzy my grandaughter would love it.

Love to read, and love my kiddo to read!

Great prize, I hope I win!

Wonderful contest and prize – thank yoU!

I think the mix is good!!

My daughter loves these books too. I was a little reluctant with her always choosing tv tie in books at first. I thought she should read the classics and some of my favorites from my childhood. Those books would rarely hold her attention but she would sit still for a Dora story. Finally I just threw in the towel. She enjoys these stories and we will read them over and over again. Now I feel that this is more important to me. As long as she continues her love of books, I am happy. And now I won't resist my son if he chooses to read Diego.

Wow Wow Wubbzy is my 1 and 2 year old sons favorite show. I would like to win this prize for them so that I can read them the books, which I know they will love. They never miss an episode. Wow Wow Wubbzy is the best!

I was a against tv tie-in stuff before my child was old enough to voice his opinion. But now he loves Wubzy, Diego, Max and Ruby, and many others. If this gets in interested in a book, I think that's great!

I think they are great. My son loves to read books that he can recognize and this helps that. Thanks for the chance, justicecw@hotmail.com

In my opinion, if your child is interested in reading the books, then let them read. You can always encourage them to read other types of books, the main thing is that they have a joy and love of reading, and if the tv tye in helps, then so be it.

enter me

My son like to see things in books that he has also saw on tv.He is 2 and it excites him to recognize them so I think it is great!

I think it makes kids want to read more when they see a book with characters they know

PLEASE COUNT ME IN ON THIS AWESOME GIVEAWAY

I think that a show that teaches values, and that life doesn’t always goes the way we want can be a rewarding program, and when a book comes into the hands of my child that streamlines the show that he loves, even more praise. Thanks for entering us into this valuable giveaway.

I don't usually enjoy tv tie-in books. I'd rather my kids read books that have nothing to do with television. But there are some good ones out there, and my kids are fascinated when tv characters come into life in books. They're not so bad after all.

my grandson is just learning to read this would be awesome for him, thanks for the chance to win it

My daughter came home talking about this, and I'm still not sure I know what it is!

I think it's a good idea to have SOME books that are TV tie-ins in order to capture the interest of struggling readers who need something to really get their attention. I don't see any harm in it, and when I was growing up, I had some books like that, too. I think it's good to have a mixture of all types of books available to young readers. Great topic for discussion!!

Thanks so much!
Michele R.(CA)
luvkittysmeowmail@gmail.com

I think anything that gets kids to read is good, but it should be only one of many options.

I am a preschool teacher and I have a lot of the tie in books. The kids love my Spongebob, Dora, and Diego books. If I need to clean the classroom the kids will sit on the carpet with books. The kids always go to the character books first

Thank you for having this offer my daughter loves to read especially books about her favorite shows!

mythicalangel@comcast.net

I also would like to add we subscribed to this due to the value it offers thank you again

mythicalangel@comcast.net

My daughter wanted to add a special thank you for the wonderful chance to win this offer….

Anything Wubbzy keeps my kids busy for hours! I highley recommend the new Wubbzy DVD, my kids and I love it!

I think that as much as my kids love tv, a book about their favorite character would be better than letting them watch the tv over and over! My son is very much in love with wubbzy, and I am so relieved that this year he can have toys and books based on the character!

I think they're fun for kids

our grandsons were more eager to read books based on their favorite TV shows

I came across this prize package on YouTube, and the contest is so cute! I can't wait to see all of the videos posted!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vEPEpX8wzr8

I think the idea of tie in books is fabulous. I would love to win for my granddaughter, thanks!

I admit I usually try to avoid the TV tie in books – there are so many great books out there!

I think anything that gets kids interested in books and reading is fine by me!! My kids love books of all types, characters, etc.

I think it is a good idea. Kids can relate to the books more if they are already familiar with the characters. Hopefully it would lead to more reading!

I love being able to incorporate reading about characters that my grandchildren already know and love into our reading time. One of my best memories (so far anyway) was when I was reading a Dora book to them and my three year old granddaughter started yelling "Swipper NO SWIPPING" and held her hand up and was so serious about it! I laughed so hard at the expression on her face! Love those moments.

Thanks for the chance to win!

Some TV Tie-in books are nice while others seem like they were written in 10 minutes and don't really go with the show. I read a Disney movie tie-in book of 101 Dalmations with my daughter and instead of wanting to make a coat out of the puppies, Cruella wanted to sell them to the circus. I can understand the need to make it sound a little more pleasent to read to children, but I can see some kids saying, "That's now how it went!"

I read a lot to my son and also let him watch tv…but I notice he has learned alot from tv including all his letters! thanks.

I think they're great. They let kids know that books are just as (if not more) fun as television!

Whatever is entertaining and educational whats the harm I say! If it teaches my kids good fundimentals then more power to them!Thanks for the chance to win!

Sweet idea!

anything that gets kids to read is a great idea..A lot of kids now watch so much tv and video games they hardly know what a good book is..these are great!!!

I think they are fine as long as the subject is wholesome.

We love books based on movies and tv shows. It isn't all we read but following favorite characters in new adventures is fun for kids.

Hope I'm not too late! My 2 1/2 year old twins are big into reading, or rather, me reading to them. ) Their favorite show surprisingly is Wow Wow Wubbzy so this would be perfect for us! I agree that book/movie/tv show tie-ins helps reading. My son who's 7 is a terrific reader partly because of that. He wasn't at all interested in reading until we got books that had characters etc from his fave movies & YV shows. It helped us alot!

I don't mind books being tied into a tv show. Anything that gets them interested in reading is great! Toys or junk food are a little different. Sometimes they carry it too far, just to sell toys and such. But books are good!

Books that are about a tv show might just get the kids from the first.

I already chastise myself for allowing her to watch as much TV as she does, but I can see the benefit of having books that tie into her favorite TV shows.

They often encourage and excite my son about reading more.