Key takeaways
- First birthday: a short keepsake with a parent in it, mostly for the years ahead.
- Two to five: a tale they already love, or whatever they're obsessed with this month.
- Six to nine: an adventure with a best friend as second hero, or a story they help write.
- The book is digital and usually ready in a few minutes, so it can be made the night before.
Birthday presents arrive in a heap and most of them are forgotten by teatime. A book in which the birthday child is the hero tends to survive the heap, partly because nobody else can have brought the same one. Here is what works at each age, which tales to start from, and how to make one even if the party is tomorrow.
Personalised birthday books by age
The story is written for the age you enter, so the same tale comes out simpler for a three-year-old than for an eight-year-old. These are starting points, not rules: the best choice is still the story your child already asks for.
First birthday
The baby won’t understand it, and that’s fine: it’s a book for the years ahead, “the one from when I was one”. Keep it short, choose bright pictures and put a parent in it, so the book records who was there. The Unicorn and the Rainbow or The Three Little Pigs at the shortest length both work well.
The Unicorn and the Rainbow
Seven colors, one brave little heart
Make this book with your child →
The Three Little Pigs
Straw, sticks, and good solid brick
Make this book with your child →Second and third birthday
Short, familiar tales with repetition they can join in with. Goldilocks and the Three Bears is ideal: too hot, too cold, just right, and your child is the one who says sorry at the end. Little Red Riding Hood is another favourite, and a grandmother can play the grandmother with her own face.
Goldilocks and the Three Bears
Too hot, too cold, just right
Make this book with your child →
Little Red Riding Hood
Through the woods to grandmother's house
Make this book with your child →Fourth and fifth birthday
Whatever they’re obsessed with this month. The princess phase, the pirate phase and the knights-and-dragons phase all have a matching tale: Cinderella, Peter Pan, Puss in Boots, Saint George and the Dragon. Read it at bedtime the night before and they wake up as the hero of their own day.
Cinderella
One ball, one glass slipper, one midnight
Make this book with your child →
Puss in Boots
Tiny boots, big bravery, royal surprises
Make this book with your child →
Saint George and the Dragon
One brave knight, one fierce dragon, one kingdom finally at peace
Make this book with your child →Sixth to eighth birthday
Children this age like a proper adventure, and they like sharing it. Make the best friend the second hero, or give a brother or sister a part. Jack and the Beanstalk, Aladdin and the Magic Lamp and Robin Hood have room for a sidekick. Ask the friend’s parents before you use a photo.
Jack and the Beanstalk
A vine that grows past the clouds
Make this book with your child →
Aladdin and the Magic Lamp
Three wishes, one genie and a flying carpet
Make this book with your child →
Robin Hood and the Heart of Sherwood Forest
An arrow that never misses, and a promise to share fairly
Make this book with your child →Ninth birthday and older
A story about something real from the year: the match they won, the holiday, the new puppy. Let them help write the idea and choose the illustration style, or pick a bigger legend such as King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table or Alice in Wonderland. The age guide goes deeper on which story suits whom.
King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table
One sword in a stone, and a table with no head of it
Make this book with your child →
Alice in Wonderland
Down the rabbit hole and curiouser by the page
Make this book with your child →All of them, with the parts each tale has for family and friends, are on the personalised story books page.
A “this is your year” story
One of our favourite uses for the write-your-own option is a short story about the year ahead or the year just gone. A couple of sentences is enough:
- On her seventh birthday, Maya finds a map to a hidden treehouse at the bottom of the garden.
- Oscar turns five and is invited to be the youngest knight at the castle.
The guide to using your own idea shows what to put in.
Who can be in a birthday book
Up to three people fit in one book, and one or two of them can be heroes. Typical birthday line-ups: the birthday child and a best friend as joint heroes; the child with a grandparent who has a part in the tale; or two siblings sharing the story. See tales with a part for a best friend and tales with a part for Grandma.
If the party is tomorrow
The book is digital: once you have chosen the story and added a photo, it is usually ready in a few minutes. You can read it on screen, download it as a PDF and listen to it read aloud, so it can be part of the day even if you start the evening before.
The night before
Read the book together at bedtime the night before the birthday. They wake up as the hero of their own day.
If you’re a guest
You’ll need a clear photo from a parent, so a personalised book is one for godparents, grandparents and close friends. If asking would spoil the surprise, a gift card is the easy way round it: choose a credit pack, add a note and the date it should arrive, and the family makes the book themselves with the photo they like best. More ideas in the gift ideas list.
One every year
Some families make a book on every birthday, sometimes the same tale each time. After a few years the row of books is a flick-book of the child growing up, drawn from that year’s photo.
Choose a story on iaminthestory.com and make them the hero of their birthday.
Frequently asked questions
What's a good personalised book for a first birthday?
Something short and bright that will mostly be read to them and kept. The Unicorn and the Rainbow or The Three Little Pigs at the shortest length, with a parent in the story.
Can I make it the day before the party?
Yes. The book is digital and usually takes a few minutes to make. Read it on screen, download the PDF or listen to it read aloud on the day.
Can the birthday child's friends be in it?
Up to three people fit in one book, and two of them can be heroes, so a best friend can share the adventure. Ask their parents before using a photo.
What if I can't get a photo without spoiling the surprise?
Give a gift card instead: choose a credit pack, add a note and the day it should arrive, and the family makes the book with the photo they choose.
