Nosy Crow is a UK-based publishing company established by Kate Wilson who has a very well-regarded history in children's publishing heading up teams at MacMillan Children's Books and Scholastic UK. What should be appreciated is that Nosy Crow is not just about apps, but about stories for children and they are telling those stories through both books and apps. In their first year they have published over 23 children's books, secured some strong distribution deals and made an impact in the children's eBook and app sphere with two well-designed fairytale stories.
I thought it was worth profiling Nosy Crow as it comes to the end of its first year because for me as a GeekDad and a writer/researcher on the world of children and families, its approach is one others could learn from. What was clear when I met with Kate Wilson on her trip to Australia earlier this year was that Nosy Crow is respectful of children. This means they are interested in not just selling books and apps, but in creating stories that will be memorable and loved by children, they respect children enough to invest their time and money in quality products - and the results show. The traditional publishing world is continuing to grapple with the changes mobile technology is bringing to their world, but publishers like Nosy Crow understand that the story is still paramount and that good illustration and design in children's books is essential.
Nosy Crow's two current apps, Three Little Pigs and Cinderella, are not typical of the large number of fairytale apps and stories available in the iTunes stores. They are not typical in that when you engage with them you can sense the time and effort that has gone into their production. The illustrations are very stylized, the animation and voices of characters feel a lot like they come from a children's television space. I'm not sure if their development team have people from children's TV animation in them, but there is a familiarity and comfort that comes from these stories which I have seen make children giggle and laugh along with story.
The TV feel could have to do with the animation style. The animations are subtle and in that slight 3D vision which give you a small sense of depth at times. They remind me of Richard Scarry books and the fun of Basil Brush, which may be about accents and the developers' British heritage (it also may not, I'm just musing). The story retellings are strong and have not been brushed over. So many children's ebooks feel like they have not gone through a decent editorial process, but Nosy Crow's offerings to date feel like they have integrity and a flow that comes with a rigorous editing process.
I talked about how Nosy Crow respects children, and that comes through in the playfulness and the way they celebrate and inject play at a child's level - and there is a difference. Sometimes the play and animation in apps is designed by adults in the way they think children want or should experience playfulness, but Nosy Crow apps feel like they have been designed by children. Of course they haven't, but it is likely the attention to detail and implicit understanding of what works for children that comes from decades in children's publishing. You see it in the work of Ruckus Media Group and Callaway Digital Arts who are definitely Nosy Crow contemporaries.
There looks to be a good line up of apps planned for release in 2012. And, with the crowded eBook market for children offering so much choice finding a publisher like Nosy Crow who you know will give you quality stories that your children deserve is a valuable thing. Nosy Crow is one I think you should keep tabs on when you are looking for some new stories for your kids.
