Disney is helping introduce Marvel characters to kids with some new books designed to make them love the characters in a kid-friendly way, building a new fanbase that will eventually grow into the animated series and cinematic universe.
For the preschooler in your life who thinks superheroes are cool, Avengers: Shake to Assemble is an interactive story that lets toddlers help unite the team. Each page features an action they have to perform in order to call forth each Avenger. However, this book doesn’t feature any moving parts or mechanisms. It’s up you as the reader to keep them engaged and act surprised, applauding them for their participation. It’s almost as if there were a Disney Jr. show based on Marvel characters. If this doesn’t sound fun to you, you probably won’t enjoy sharing this with your kids.
Kids learning to read have no doubt seen the “World of Reading” book series. A “Level One” book based on Ant-Man and appropriately titled This is Ant-Man uses a “See Spot run” text style to present Scott Lang and his Ant-Man persona. Villains include some obscure ones, like Modok, and the story ends with Scott teaming up with the Avengers.
A “Level Two” book features the Avengers and is called Battle with Ultron. This book elevates the difficulty level slightly with some tougher words like “Android” and a slightly more fluid reading style, but still keeping sentences simple and compact. When Iron Man discovers that Ultron has kidnapped the Avengers, he assembles a new team featuring Black Widow, Hawkeye, Quicksilver, Scarlet Witch, Falcon and Vision to free the other Avengers and take down Ultron.
When your kids become established readers in elementary school, the “Mighty Marvel Chapter Book” series will be perfect for them. One of the latest releases in this series is Ant-Man: Zombie Repellent. Featuring large text, colored and stylized words, and some fun images, this book is sure to be a hit with any kid interested in superheroes like Ant-Man. It starts with a short story about Ant-Man’s past, then gets into the main plot. When Ant-Man discovers a virus turning ants into zombies, he enlists the Avengers for help. As the ants bite humans, humans become zombies, too! Scott works with Bruce Banner to come up with a cure so they can turn everybody back to normal. And the stakes get higher when Tony Stark becomes infected. It’s a fun story that’s sure to keep kids reading through to the end.
Similar to all of the Disney hardcover storybook collections that have been available for years, Marvel’s The Avengers Storybook Collection combines nineteen short stories with original artwork to introduce kids to these fantastic characters. Adult fans who have been reading the comics for years will be delighted to see that these are the comic book versions of these characters and their outrageous adventures far exceed the limitations of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The first several stories tell the origins of Hulk, Black Widow, Hawkeye and Falcon as they join the already established team of Avengers. The stories feature some well known villains, like Red Skull, Loki, Thanos and Ultron, but also introduces kids to more obscure ones like Baron Zemo, Enchantress and Kang. And as if superheroes aren’t cool enough, two chapters feature the Avengers facing off against dinosaurs. Your kids are sure to love this!