Take your favorite rides home with you!

Interestingly, Disney found a way to do it through some old-fashioned ideas.  When I was a kid, one of my favorite attractions was America Sings.  I’d go on that ride over and over again.  Then they came out with an album on Disneyland Records and I wore that vinyl out!  I still have most of it memorized.  To me that was one of the best ideas; find a way to take home the experience in the park.  Now Disney has found a new way to bring the magic home – books with CDs.

Title: Disney Parks Presents: Pirates of the Caribbean
Author: George Bruns, Xavier Atencio; illustrations by Mike Wall
Cost: $17.99
Publisher: Disney Press
Ages: 3-5 (and fans of Pirates of the Caribbean)
Genre: Picture book, young reader

It started in 2011 with the publication of Disney Parks Presents: It’s A Small World. But then there was a five year gap between publications when Disney Parks Presents: Haunted Mansion came out.  It was a beautiful book that really captured the “spirit” of the ride.  Last year saw Disney Parks Presents: Pirates of the Caribbean enter the market.  Again, this book was a wonderful tribute to an incredibly popular ride.  The lively illustrations help to create the fun atmosphere you feel as you ride through this fan favorite.   And this year we have another book – Disney Parks Presents: The Jungle Cruise!

While the other three books feature the signature song from each attraction with illustrations taking you through the ride, this new publication is the actual narration from the ride itself.  And it’s told by former Jungle Cruise skipper, John Lasseter – currently the Chief Creative Officer for Pixar and Walt Disney Animation.  If you’ve been on the Jungle Cruise before, you know the hallmark of the ride are the corny jokes and puns.  Those are definitely present in the book. But you’ll have to wait a bit for this one.  It doesn’t release until July 3rd but you can pre-order it online.

Title: Disney Parks Presents: The Jungle Cruise
Author: WDI and the Jungle Cruise skippers; illustrations by Erwin Madrid
Cost: $17.99
Publisher: Disney Press
Ages: 3-5
Genre: Picture book, young reader

If you’ve been hoping to take home a piece of the magic with you, now you can!  These publications are a real treat for kids and adults alike and if one of these rides is your favorite, you can relive it over and over again.  What attraction would you like to see get the Disney Parks Presents treatment?  Personally I would love to see them do an adaptation of Country Bear Jamboree, The Land or Journey Into Imagination with Figment!  I wish more attractions had original concepts, story, and music…