Blogjack continued....
I hope at least some of you have taken the time to check out the online book experience I talked about last time. I have been raving about One Child to any and all that will stand still enough to listen, but that's not really enough anymore; a little book review is in order.
One Child is a thriller which ultimately brings together several story lines in a grand climax. The first 8 (erm 9, more on that later) days are free to anyone with the remainder of the book available in daily release online format for only $10. I think it's a bargain.
By the end of the free period the reader will have met the major characters and been introduced to all of the major story lines. Author Jeff Buick takes the reader from the gritty reality of life on the streets of Khandahar as experienced by Halima, an 11 year old girl, to the world of high frequency trading and a view of Central Park from the 46th floor. That wealthy and somewhat removed perspective then goes further into the world of private covert operations and one Trey Miller, whose job it is to exact revenge for his employer by disrupting a U2 concert in Moscow. Meanwhile, back in Afghanistan a journalist and his soldier escort are set to have an experience which will change their lives.
One Child is a really good read, and you'll be able to purchase it online, or in bookstores, as a trade paperback edition beginning August 25th. Before I started reading online, I was a little sceptical about it. I like books, and I like to read with a pencil in hand. Enthrill has created a much more inclusive experience though, and it adds so much to the book that I've lost my pencil entirely. I've used the reader both on my computer and on my iPod. It's smooth and easy to use, with a clear interface and options to scroll or click to move forward or backwards within the text. Enthrill has been responsive to reader comments and went ahead with some improvements to the reader and the purchasing screens. Unfortunately, it appears that Trey Miller took advantage of that opportunity to send the whole thing sideways resulting in both One Child and Enthrill going offline for an entire day. To their credit though, Enthrill has a staff of dedicated IT geeks, who found the sabotage and put it all back together, better than before. In compensation for being down on day 8, Enthrill released day 9 as part of the free reading segment. Well done all! (I hope they catch that guy Trey Miller.) Those first 9 days of story are all available online now, and you can sign up and join the experience at any time.
I love reading this thing on my iPod. I like that I can control the font size. Each mini-page features a good balance of type to white space and moving forward is a tap on the side of the screen. I don't think it's slowed my reading pace at all, and I do believe that challenged readers would benefit greatly from the small screen experience. It's hard to be overwhelmed by text when you only have a few lines at a time. Other features work better on the bigger screen. It's easier to use the audio player there, and easier to follow the links to personal profiles, Facebook, and company websites on the computer. Unfortunately I don't have access to an iPad, and would love to know how that format affects the experience. My guess is that the iPad may be the best of both worlds with an easy reading format and large enough screen to let the reader explore.
Innovative publication, easy to use and customizable reader interface and a really good thriller all together in one slick, interconnected, very real reading experience. Well done!
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