A Christmas gift for a 1-year-old: a personalised children's book starring them

A one-year-old points, looks at you and waits for you to name what they've found. This book gives you more moments like that: one or two short sentences per page, animals making sounds and things from your child's own day. Your child appears in every picture, alongside the people they love most.

Create a book for a 1-year-old

Hardcover in time for Christmas: order by 29 November

One-year-olds: one word at a time

Around their first birthday, many children take their first steps, often holding on to the sofa. Words come slowly: ‘mama’, ‘look’, ‘doggy’, and a few that only the family understands. Most of all, children this age point: at the light, the bird outside the window or the picture in a book. Then they look up to hear the word. A one-year-old can understand simple requests and loves to show what they can do: clap their hands, say ‘moo’ or wave goodbye. A book with one thing on each page and a sentence that comes back again is a good fit. There's time to look, point and make a sound. When your child finds themselves in a picture and points, you've read the book just right.

Would you like to see a finished book before you decide? Browse our example books.

Themes with things to point at

On the farm, there's plenty for a one-year-old to point at: the cow that says moo, the pig in the mud and the hen running away. There are sounds to copy on almost every page. If you've been to the seaside, try the beach, with a bucket and spade, wet toes and a seagull watching from a rock. Tell us about your own beach and it can appear in the book.

Choose a theme

What you can tell us

Think about what your child points to at home. Perhaps it's the dog, the tractor outside the window or Grandpa's red hat. Add it to the form and it can become part of the story. Include the people closest to your child as characters, and add their favourite soft toy if there's one that goes everywhere with them. With a photo, it can be drawn just as it is, worn ear and all. Friendship or sharing makes a good message for a one-year-old, because it can be shown in small ways: sharing a cookie or giving teddy a hug. You can write the foreword to your child for a few years from now, when they can read it themselves.

A book for a first birthday

A first birthday is a lovely occasion to make the book, and it makes a thoughtful gift from grandparents or godparents. Read it on the floor, on your lap or before sleep, and help your child turn the pages. The hardcover isn't a board book, so it's best for an adult to hold it. If you'd like your child to hear the story while you're busy, there's an audiobook too: a QR code is printed in the book, and scanning it with a phone plays the story aloud. In a few years, your child might take the book out on their own and wonder how little they once were.