Europress Bookshelf facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Europress Bookshelf |
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Alice in Wonderland Cover
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| Genres | Literature, edutainment |
| Developers | Europress Software |
| Publishers | Q Range |
| Platforms | Windows 3.x, Windows, Macintosh |
| First release | Alice in Wonderland April 6, 1995 |
| Latest release | The Hunchback of Notre Dame |
The Europress Bookshelf was a cool series of interactive storybooks made just for kids! These were developed by Europress Software and released by Q Range. You could play them on your computer using CD-ROMs, whether you had a Mac OS or Windows PC. The games were created using a special tool called Klik & Play, which made them easy to build. This series had three main parts: "Read & Play" for younger kids, "Topsy and Tim" which were based on popular books, and "Living Classics" featuring famous stories.
Contents
What are these games like?
How to play
When you started a game, you would see a map. From this map, you could choose how to enjoy the story.
- You could have the whole story read to you from start to finish.
- Or, you could pick any chapter you wanted to read.
- Each game also came with several fun mini-games to play.
- You could even learn more about the book's author and the story itself.
While reading, you could stop the story at any time. Many objects on the screen were interactive. If you clicked them, they would often do something fun, like an animation! Plus, if you saw a special word highlighted, you could click it to find out what it meant.
The different books
The Europress Bookshelf series was split into three main groups of games.
Read & Play series
This series was designed for younger readers. It included classic stories that were easy to follow and fun to interact with.
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| Title | Author | Release date | Notes | |
| The Gingerbread Man | St. Nicholas Magazine | 1996 | Narrated by Daphne Oxenford | |
| Goldilocks and the Three Bears | Robert Southey | 1996 | Narrated by Daphne Oxenford | |
Topsy and Tim series
These games were based on the popular "Topsy and Tim" books by Jean and Gareth Adamson. They followed the adventures of two curious children.
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| Title | Author | Release date | Notes | |
| Topsy and Tim go to School | Jean Adamson and Gareth Adamson | 1995 | ||
| Topsy and Tim at the Supermarket | Jean Adamson and Gareth Adamson | 1996 | ||
| Topsy and Tim at Granny and Grandpa's | Jean Adamson and Gareth Adamson | 1996 | ||
Living Classics series
This part of the series brought famous classic books to life. Each game included fun activities and sometimes even the original artwork from the books.
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| Title | Author | Release date | Notes | |
| Alice in Wonderland | Lewis Carroll | April 6, 1995 | Includes 4 games and Sir John Tenniel's original illustrations. | |
| Treasure Island | Robert Louis Stevenson | 1995 | Includes 4 games | |
| Journey to the Center of the Earth | Jules Verne | 1995 | Includes 4 games | |
| Peter Pan | J. M. Barrie | 1996 | Includes 12 games | |
| Tom Sawyer | Mark Twain | 1996 | Includes 3 games | |
| The Hunchback of Notre Dame | Victor Hugo | 1996 | ||
Game releases
The first three "Living Classics" games were also translated into Spanish, allowing more children to enjoy these interactive stories in another language.
