National Tell a Story Day is this Saturday, April 27, and Google Assistant is ready to get in on the fun. Starting today, Google Assistant will be able to tell you a story in English using your Android or iOS phone, if you reside in the U.S., UK, Canada, Australia, or India.
Before you get started with your literary journey, you'll need to make sure you have the latest version of Google Play Books installed on your Android or iOS phone. Then once you're ready to begin story time, all you have to do is say, "Hey Google, tell me a story" or if you're putting the kids to bed you can try "Hey Google, tell me a bedtime story".
If you're looking for some stories to check out, you can start with "Let's Be Firefighters!" Blaze and the Monster Machines or "Robot Rampage" Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
Another way to get the family involved in story time is with the read along feature on your Google Assistant speaker or smart display. While using the read-along feature, Assistant will play sounds effects and music to bring the story to life. It is even smart enough to realize if you skip ahead in the book and will make adjustments to catch up with you. Read along will also play ambient music if you pause while it waits for you to continue the story.
Read along is available for classic books such as Peter Pan, Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, The Three Little Pigs, and many others, including several from Disney. In order to use read along, make sure you have a compatible book, then say, "Hey Google, let's read along" and Assistant will prompt you for the book title.
One more way you can get your literary fix with Google this Saturday is with audiobooks on Google Play. All you have to do is be signed into your Google Play Books account and say, "Hey Google, read Ready Player One" or any other book you choose. However, you must already own the audiobook, if not it will only play a sample.
Seeing is believing
The Google Home Hub is everything you get with a traditional Google Assistant speaker but with a better experience. Not only can you ask it questions, get the weather, and control your smart home but you get to see and interact with the elements on the screen. This makes Google Assistant even more interactive than it was before.
