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FORT WORTH STAR TELEGRAM
Posted on Tue, Jul. 04, 2006
Choose-your-own-adventure novels making a comeback
By AMAN BATHEJA
STAR-TELEGRAM STAFF WRITER
From the opening sentence, the book was unusual: "You are
a mountain climber." Seemed awfully bossy for a narrator.
Fine. I'm a mountain climber.
I read on to find that a friend and I plan to hunt for the Yeti in
Nepal. On Page 4, my friend disappears and things start to
get trippy. I'm told to turn to Page 5 if I choose to cancel a
meeting to search for my bud. If I keep the meeting, I turn to,
brace yourself, Page 6. My story had the potential to end on
pages 26, 43, 87 and 25 other spots.
Growing up, millions like me who read The Abominable
Snowman and other "Choose Your Own Adventure" books
were quickly hooked. The first eight titles in the series have
recently been re-released, and the first in a planned series of
DVDs on the original titles comes out later this month. But this
isn't just an opportunity for a new generation of young people
to become fans of the CYOA genre. Although the first title in
the series was published in 1979, these slim and gratifying
books may be more relevant than ever.
Last year, author Steven Johnson caught some attention for
his book, Everything Bad Is Good For You, in which he
argued that today's kids read less because books are just
about the least stimulating thing they can do. Video games,
with their interactivity, give kids a sense of control. Books,
meanwhile, simply unfold as the reader passively follows
along, Johnson said. But the CYOA books help make up the
difference by adding the elements of interactivity and control
into reading.
Thinking back roughly 20 years ago to elementary school, I
clearly remember sitting in my school library, actively flipping
back and forth through the pages of a CYOA book. I would
read them several times in one sitting, always ending up at a
different ending. Reading those books felt different from the
reading I had to do for school. I'm pretty sure the multiple plot
twists of The Lost Jewels of Nabooti are stored in a different
part of my brain. (If a young girl tries to give you her dog,
don't take it. It's a bomb!)
Reading a CYOA book was more like playing a video game
on my treasured Nintendo system. I clearly wasn't alone. The
first 15 books in the series each have sold a million copies
and more than 250 million CYOA books are in print, a number
that lags not too far behind the success of Harry Potter.
Between 1979 and 1998, Bantam Books released more than
180 books in the "Choose Your Own Adventure" series. A
few spin-off series also attracted fans, including CYOA books
based on Disney characters and the "Star Wars" films.
Over the years, the formula for the books stayed pretty much
the same. They were always thin on character development
but heavy on plot. Kind of like a young adult version of 24,
with the reader playing Jack Bauer.
Then, in 1998, the books went out of print. Copies could still
be found in used-book stores and libraries. R.A.
Montgomery, who wrote many of the books in the series and
owned rights to many of the titles, searched for a new
publisher, but eventually decided to resurrect the franchise
under his own company, ChooseCo, based in Waitsfield, Vt.
The newly released books have been updated a bit.
Technologies like GPS systems and cellphones weren't
around back in the early 1980s, so they've been integrated
into the stories when needed.
And the DVD version of The Abominable Snowman is also a
treat. The voices of the characters include William H. Macy
and Malcolm In the Middle's Frankie Muniz. The viewer is
asked periodically throughout the beautifully animated feature
to use their DVD remote to make a critical choice for the
characters (the first one asks whether they should parachute
out of a plummeting plane or ride it out.). As several minutes
of plot unfold between each decision, it can feel like a video
game that does much of the playing for you. But as a
companion to the book, it works great. Also fun is a 30-minute
documentary on Nepal, where the story takes place.
The interactive fiction concept might be spreading. Next year,
HarperCollins plans to release Pretty Little Mistakes, a
600-page Choose-Your-Own-Adventure-type novel for adults
by Heather McElhatton. Depending on the decisions made
by the reader, the main character's options include becoming
an actress, an art thief, a cult member, or a murderer.
It should prove interesting to see how more mature fare does
in this format, and whether it can successfully depict the
toughest part of growing up: ending up with more choices
than you can handle, even when you just can't wait to choose
for yourself.
Aman Batheja, 817-390-7695 abatheja@star-telegram.com
Posted on Tue, Jul. 04, 2006
Choose-your-own-adventure novels making a comeback
By AMAN BATHEJA
STAR-TELEGRAM STAFF WRITER
From the opening sentence, the book was unusual: "You are
a mountain climber." Seemed awfully bossy for a narrator.
Fine. I'm a mountain climber.
I read on to find that a friend and I plan to hunt for the Yeti in
Nepal. On Page 4, my friend disappears and things start to
get trippy. I'm told to turn to Page 5 if I choose to cancel a
meeting to search for my bud. If I keep the meeting, I turn to,
brace yourself, Page 6. My story had the potential to end on
pages 26, 43, 87 and 25 other spots.
Growing up, millions like me who read The Abominable
Snowman and other "Choose Your Own Adventure" books
were quickly hooked. The first eight titles in the series have
recently been re-released, and the first in a planned series of
DVDs on the original titles comes out later this month. But this
isn't just an opportunity for a new generation of young people
to become fans of the CYOA genre. Although the first title in
the series was published in 1979, these slim and gratifying
books may be more relevant than ever.
Last year, author Steven Johnson caught some attention for
his book, Everything Bad Is Good For You, in which he
argued that today's kids read less because books are just
about the least stimulating thing they can do. Video games,
with their interactivity, give kids a sense of control. Books,
meanwhile, simply unfold as the reader passively follows
along, Johnson said. But the CYOA books help make up the
difference by adding the elements of interactivity and control
into reading.
Thinking back roughly 20 years ago to elementary school, I
clearly remember sitting in my school library, actively flipping
back and forth through the pages of a CYOA book. I would
read them several times in one sitting, always ending up at a
different ending. Reading those books felt different from the
reading I had to do for school. I'm pretty sure the multiple plot
twists of The Lost Jewels of Nabooti are stored in a different
part of my brain. (If a young girl tries to give you her dog,
don't take it. It's a bomb!)
Reading a CYOA book was more like playing a video game
on my treasured Nintendo system. I clearly wasn't alone. The
first 15 books in the series each have sold a million copies
and more than 250 million CYOA books are in print, a number
that lags not too far behind the success of Harry Potter.
Between 1979 and 1998, Bantam Books released more than
180 books in the "Choose Your Own Adventure" series. A
few spin-off series also attracted fans, including CYOA books
based on Disney characters and the "Star Wars" films.
Over the years, the formula for the books stayed pretty much
the same. They were always thin on character development
but heavy on plot. Kind of like a young adult version of 24,
with the reader playing Jack Bauer.
Then, in 1998, the books went out of print. Copies could still
be found in used-book stores and libraries. R.A.
Montgomery, who wrote many of the books in the series and
owned rights to many of the titles, searched for a new
publisher, but eventually decided to resurrect the franchise
under his own company, ChooseCo, based in Waitsfield, Vt.
The newly released books have been updated a bit.
Technologies like GPS systems and cellphones weren't
around back in the early 1980s, so they've been integrated
into the stories when needed.
And the DVD version of The Abominable Snowman is also a
treat. The voices of the characters include William H. Macy
and Malcolm In the Middle's Frankie Muniz. The viewer is
asked periodically throughout the beautifully animated feature
to use their DVD remote to make a critical choice for the
characters (the first one asks whether they should parachute
out of a plummeting plane or ride it out.). As several minutes
of plot unfold between each decision, it can feel like a video
game that does much of the playing for you. But as a
companion to the book, it works great. Also fun is a 30-minute
documentary on Nepal, where the story takes place.
The interactive fiction concept might be spreading. Next year,
HarperCollins plans to release Pretty Little Mistakes, a
600-page Choose-Your-Own-Adventure-type novel for adults
by Heather McElhatton. Depending on the decisions made
by the reader, the main character's options include becoming
an actress, an art thief, a cult member, or a murderer.
It should prove interesting to see how more mature fare does
in this format, and whether it can successfully depict the
toughest part of growing up: ending up with more choices
than you can handle, even when you just can't wait to choose
for yourself.
Aman Batheja, 817-390-7695 abatheja@star-telegram.com