Amazon Announces Rapids – A Playful Approach to Reading for Today’s Connected Kids
New App Features Fun, Engaging Short Stories Told in a Unique Chat
Style
Amazon Rapids Offers Readers Ages 7-12 Hundreds of Illustrated,
Original Stories with Dozens More Added Monthly
SEATTLE–(BUSINESS WIRE)–(NASDAQ: AMZN) – Today, Amazon announced a new app that offers a playful
approach to children’s reading. Amazon Rapids offers illustrated short
stories written in a unique chat style that brings stories to life, one
message at a time. Stories on Amazon Rapids are told through the lens of
characters chatting with each other, from an alien texting about
invading Earth to two chickens debating if they should cross the street.
The app is available for iOS, Android and Amazon Fire devices, and
offers hundreds of original stories, with dozens of new ones added
monthly. Parents who sign up now can subscribe at a special introductory
rate of $2.99 per month to give their kids unlimited access to short
stories. Parents can start a free two week trial at http://rapids.amazon.com.
“Many kids already love using phones to chat with friends and family,”
said Rohit Agarwal, General Manager of Amazon K-12 Education. “We wanted
to see what authors and illustrators could create with an app that made
it easy to tell stories that way. We’re excited to share Amazon Rapids
with parents and their kids.”
With Amazon Rapids, kids can choose from many types of stories including
adventure, fantasy, humor, mystery, science fiction and sports. Stories
feature a variety of topics, from a grandma invading her granddaughter’s
group chat to a duck taking over a rooster’s duties on a farm.
Additionally, with age-appropriate content and key features like the
built-in glossary and “read to me” mode, kids can feel confident and
read independently. Whether a kid is on her way to soccer practice and
has 10 minutes in the car, or waiting with friends for the school bus to
arrive, she can quickly immerse herself in a hilarious adventure and
enjoy the simple pleasure of a great story.
Amazon Rapids Includes:
-
Unique chat style — Stories are told through the lens of
characters chatting with each other, letting stories come to life one
message at a time. -
Hundreds of original stories — Kids can explore a large and
growing library that’s filled with original stories spanning
adventure, fantasy, humor, mystery, science fiction and sports. -
Age-appropriate content – All content is thoughtfully edited to
be appropriate for kids ages 7-12. -
Built-in glossary — Kids can easily look up the definition and
pronunciation of words to help build their reading confidence. Each
time they look up a word, it is automatically added to their personal
glossary for easy reference. -
“Read to me” —Kids can have stories read aloud to them while
they follow along with the text.
“Having been a teacher for over a decade, I’ve learned to write stories
in a way that compels kids to dive in and the Amazon Rapids format is a
perfect way to make that happen,” said Raymond Bean, best-selling
children’s author. “In my first Amazon Rapids story, Alien Invasion, a
boy named Gordon and an alien connect via a misdirected text message and
hilarity ensues as they discuss the aliens’ plans to land on earth.”
Parents can visit http://rapids.amazon.com
to download Amazon Rapids today.
About Amazon
Amazon is guided by four principles: customer obsession rather than
competitor focus, passion for invention, commitment to operational
excellence, and long-term thinking. Customer reviews, 1-Click shopping,
personalized recommendations, Prime, Fulfillment by Amazon, AWS, Kindle
Direct Publishing, Kindle, Fire tablets, Fire TV, Amazon Echo, and Alexa
are some of the products and services pioneered by Amazon. For more
information, visit www.amazon.com/about.
Contacts
Amazon.com, Inc.
Media Hotline, 206-266-7180
Amazon-pr@amazon.com
www.amazon.com/pr
