Pick a story, we'll turn it into your book

for the baby and the family

Where the name came from, and why that one.

The first time home

The drive home and the first evening together.

There are two of them

for the twins

For when it is not one but two.

Welcome to our family

for the child joining the family

For a family that grows in a different way.

You are getting a little cousin

for the cousin

Things change outside the household too.

The day you were christened

for any christening

The story of that one morning, to read aloud later.

Called by your name

About the name that was chosen, said out loud today.

Your godparents

Two people saying yes to you today.

The light of your candle

One small flame, passed on from the big candle.

Everyone who said yes today

It is not only mum and dad who promise something.

We bring you to be blessed

for dedication service

No water, but hands on your head and a blessing.

We asked for you

for dedication service

About the time before you were here.

The gown that was worn before

Who wore it before you, and how long ago that was.

Three times water

for any christening

What actually happens, explained for whoever does not get it yet.

I was there when you were christened

for any christening

Told by the big brother or sister.

The name in your ear

The first time you ever heard your own name.

How we chose your name

Every name has a reason. This one has a whole story.

Your first day in the cradle

Flowers, songs, and a cradle that will not stop swinging.

Everyone who came that day

for the whole family

Some travelled a long way to say one small word.

The star you were born under

for the older brother or sister

The sky had a hand in the first letter of your name.

I was there when you got your name

Told by the one who had to hold still and be quiet.

A name from both sides

Two families, two ideas, one name that carries both.

What your name means

for a brother and a sister

Your name is a word, and the word means something.

The rakhi you made yourself

for the sister

The shop-bought ones were nicer. This one was not.

What the promise really means

He promised to protect her. She had other ideas.

Too far away to be there

for siblings in different countries

A rakhi in an envelope, and a screen propped against a cup.

Two sisters, one thread

for two sisters

No brother in this house, and the day happens anyway.

The one who is too small

for the youngest child

Everyone has a job today except the smallest.

Where did the sweets go?

for a brother and a sister

A full tray in the morning. By noon, three left.

The thread that broke

for a brother and a sister

It snapped before it was even tied.

A rakhi for a friend

for two friends

Not family, but the one who is always there.

The best birthday

for a birthday

A day that starts with balloons and ends somewhere else entirely.

Thank you, teacher

for saying goodbye to a teacher

A book to give to the person who made the difference all year.

Ready for secondary school

for leaving primary school

Years in one school, and then you are outside with your bag.

The first day at school

for starting school

New bag, new class, and a knot in your stomach.

The certificate you earned yourself

for a certificate or first achievement

Nobody can do this bit for you.

The Christmas that went differently

for Christmas

Snow, candlelight, and something that should not be there.

A book for dad

for Father’s Day

About the things he does and never mentions.

A book for mum

for Mother’s Day

A whole day of pretending to be the mother.

Staying at grandma and grandad’s

for grandparents

Different rules, a different bed, and the best stories.

Get well soon

for someone who is ill

A book for anyone who cannot go outside for a while.

The map in the attic

Behind a loose floorboard lies a map no one has ever seen.

What is really in the dark

The sound under the bed turns out to be something else entirely.

The house that is not home yet

Moving house, with all the boxes and everything unfamiliar that comes with it.

The dragon who could not roar

A dragon with no fire, and someone who knows how that feels.

A night among the stars

The ladder in the garden goes rather higher than expected.

The day the pet started talking

It turns out he had things to say all along.

It does not work yet, and then it does

About keeping on trying until it suddenly comes easy.

What lies beneath the waves

A city on the sea floor, and nobody living there any more.

The new one in class

There is a group standing there, and you are standing next to it.

There is a dinosaur in the garden

Rather large, rather hungry, and nobody knows where he came from.

The day everything ran backwards

Pancakes for dinner and the cat in charge.

The story grandad never finished

One old photograph, and a journey to find out what really happened.

Staying over at grandma and grandpa

for the child

Different rules, a different bed, and the best stories.

Thank you for everything

for the parents who are about to become grandparents

A thank-you book for your parents, with a surprise on the last page.

When your dad was small

for the child

Grandpa knows things about dad that dad would rather forget.

The thing we made together

for the child with a grandparent

In the shed, in the kitchen, or just at the table.

A book for grandma

for grandma

Everything she does that nobody ever mentions.

A book for grandpa

for grandpa

The man who can fix anything and complains about nothing.

Grandma and grandpa live far away

for the child

A screen on the kitchen table, and a suitcase that takes too long.

Being mum for a day

for mum

Running the house yourself. It goes badly.

Being dad for a day

for dad

You are in charge. Dad does as he is told.

The things mum always does

for mum

So ordinary that nobody notices.

Everything dad can do

for dad

And the one thing he really cannot.

We are the same

for mum

Same laugh, same stubbornness, same hatred of waiting.

The thing we do together

for dad

The one thing that belongs to just the two of you.

A row in the back seat

Three hours still to drive, and it started over nothing.

I did not see anything

One of them did something. The other one knows.

Keep an eye on them

for the older one

Ten minutes, they said. It was more.

It was already broken

Something important is now in two pieces.

Sharing a room from tonight

Two beds, one room, and neither of them asked for it.

It was not me