SoftPlay "Lift and Look" Books - Review and Giveaway! (Closed)

 

Books and puzzles are two of my favourite forms of "edutainment" for children. I built up a huge collection of each when I was a kid, and my husband and I are in the process of doing the same for our own daughter. So when I got the opportunity to work with SoftPlay and review their "Lift and Look" books (one of many types of soft books and interactive toys that they offer for children), I was very excited. Why? Well, because these are pretty much books and puzzles rolled up into one! How cool is that?

The "Lift and Look" books are SoftPlay's most popular series for children ages 2+. Here is the description of these books from their website:

Young readers will love to LEARN using the soft, lift-out pieces that are featured in the Lift And Look books! The shiny, foil-enhanced pictures and fun, interactive approach to learning is sure to delight young children and keep them busy - and learning - for hours!

Lift and Look books are a fun way for young children to learn about animals, numbers, vehicles, colors, shapes and more with:

•     Shining foil highlights the pictures on each page!
•     Chunky foam pieces lift out to reveal surprise images!
•     Colorful foam pages are easy to turn   

Michelle, the Director of Marketing and Product Development at SoftPlay, generously sent me three of their newest "Lift and Look" books for review: My Yummy Lunch Box, My Dad's Toolbox and My Big Sister's Purse.

I love the selections she sent over! Each one is themed around a particular type of box or container, and the design cleverly reflects this. For example, My Yummy Lunch Box is shaped like an actual lunch box, complete with a banana and drinking box poking out the top! Very cute. :)

True to description, the foam pages are thick and easy to turn, and the images are bright, colourful and captivating!

I was initially a bit concerned about the overall durability of the books as the spine and binding is made of a thin cardboard. However, I gave the pages a good tug and shake and they feel very secure in practice.

So how exactly does the puzzle element fit in? Well, each page contains one key image that is actually an easily removable piece! Underneath the piece is a surprise picture.

 

The removable pieces really encourage imaginative play. For example, a child can pretend to brush his/her hair with the comb piece from My Big Sister's Purse.

Now the most important part - how did my little testers enjoy the books?

Well first of all, I showed the books to S, my 6-month old daughter. She's much younger than the recommended age (2+) and obviously not coordinated enough yet to remove the pieces and fit them back in. However, she loved looking at the bright, colourful pictures and naturally wanted to grab and mouth the pieces! None of the removable parts are small enough to be a choking hazard, so I wasn't too worried about this. And the one piece she did manage to suck on for a little while came out relatively unscathed which shows that they can withstand the "elements". :)

I also took the books over to my friend's house to show her 2 1/2 year old daughter. We put all three out in front of her and she got pretty giddy, flipping through one then another in quick succession. (In hindsight, perhaps we should have shown her one at a time to help her focus better!) She liked the removable pieces, pretending to eat the pop-out banana and apple from My Yummy Lunch Box!

Once she tired of paging through them, she decided it would be fun to walk on them and then use them as a booster seat. :) Good news - the books held up! Not even a dent.

All in all, I really like these books. They're bright, colourful, fun and durable, and they encourage pattern matching, fine motor control and creativity. The only constructive criticism I can think of is that I found myself wishing there were perhaps 2 or 3 removable elements per page, for even more interactivity. However my husband pointed out that this might weaken the structure of the page. It might also require the pieces to be smaller, which could become a choking hazard for babies and younger toddlers. So perhaps this is just wishful thinking on my part and not really a practical suggestion. :)

Buy It!

The "Lift and Look" books reviewed here are currently available at US Costco and Sam's Club locations exclusively. However, other SoftPlay products can be purchased from a number of different stores and online retailers. See their Where to Buy page for a full list of available retailers.

Win It!

One lucky Manager to Mom reader will win their own copy of the "Lift and Look" book My Yummy Lunch Box!

To enter, please leave a separate comment for each entry, and include your email address with each one. The number beside each action denotes how many entries it is worth, so make sure to leave the corresponding number of comments if you complete that action. I'll be checking each entry for validity, so please ensure that you complete all actions as indicated.

Mandatory entry:

• Visit SoftPlay and comment on another product that caught your eye!

Additional Entries:

• Like SoftPlay on Facebook; include your Facebook first name and last initial. It would be nice to thank them for the giveaway as well (although not mandatory). (+1)
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• Grab my button for your blog and leave the link where it can be found (see left sidebar) (+3)
• Blog about this giveaway and leave the link to your post (+3)
• Add this giveaway to a Linky List and leave the URL so I can find it (+1 per list)
• Vote for me on Picket Fence Blogs; can be done once daily. (+1 each)
• Tweet this giveaway; can be done once daily. (+1 each) Please use the following tweet or create your own; must contain @managertomom, @SoftPlayKids and a link to this giveaway post: 

#Win a copy of My Yummy Lunch Box - a new Lift and Look book from @managertomom and @SoftPlayKids ! http://tinyurl.com/6bn68rd CAN/US 6/27

Open to residents of Canada and the US. This giveaway will end on June 27, 2011 at 11:59pm EST. Winner will be chosen by Random.org, emailed, and announced on my blog shortly after giveaway ends. The winner will have 72 hours to respond to my email before a new winner is chosen.

Disclosure:  The prize is being provided and shipped to the winner by SoftPlay.  I received no financial compensation for writing my review or offering this giveaway, although I did receive the sample items free of charge.  This is my completely honest opinion above and may be different from yours.