Cheap Reader Rabbit: Playtime for Baby (Software) (Macintosh, Windows) Price

A game of tag between Reader Rabbit and Mat the Mouse ends with Mat hiding in a toy box. With Mat's help, each of the 10 toys in the box leads your baby into a new experience: singing, manipulating shapes, hide-and-seek, discovering body parts, reading storybooks and (oh joy!) rummaging in drawers. Your baby controls the action by hitting any key on the keyboard (or just hitting the keyboard as they are wont to do) or simply moving the mouse. No clicks required. The cursor is a big fat star that leaves a trail of twinkles and makes a magic-wand noise every time it moves. Brushing it against objects onscreen will elicit anything from a childlike giggle to a "ker-plunk" to the appropriate animal noise.

The only critique of this CD is that the artwork is simplistic. It would be nice to see more depth and smoother movement, if only to make the CD more enjoyable for the adults who must guide their babies through it. Such subtlety probably doesn't matter to the scads of 1-year-old consultants The Learning Company must have on staff. By developing personalized storybooks with pages that don't rip and farm animals willing to engage in endless games of hide-and-seek, the creators of this CD have managed to tap into your baby's wildest dreams. No cupboard locks in Playtime for Baby! (Ages 9 to 24 months.) --Anne Erickson