A personalised book about becoming a big brother or sister

Becoming a big brother or sister is not something a child can practise in advance. The baby is on its way – in a tummy or through adoption – people keep asking about it, and in the middle of it all stands your child with questions of their own. Will there still be room for me? What am I supposed to do? A book where your child is the big sibling answers in pictures. They get to see themselves holding a tiny hand, teaching a song and being the one who knows how everything works. The book puts words to both the pride and the worry, and gives you something to leaf through together while you wait.

The story can give your child real jobs to do: choosing which cuddly toy the baby will have, teaching the baby the best bedtime song in the world, giving a tour of the house and pointing out where the scary hoover lives. It can also be about the waiting – the days that crawl by – and about the first meeting, when a teeny-tiny hand grips a finger.

It is worth including a chapter that shows the big sibling still gets to sit on a lap and be read to. That is often what a child wonders about most, even if they never ask. The ending can look ahead: the big sibling showing the baby snow for the first time, or teaching it to wave from the pram.

Add what your child has already heard: a name you are thinking about, a jumper being handed down, the room that will be shared or the pram waiting in the hall. If your child has said something funny about the baby, put it in word for word. Parents, a grandma or the family dog can appear as characters in the pictures. If the baby has already been born, it can be in the pictures too, drawn from a photo of its own.

If you are looking for something to give during the wait, there are more ideas under gifts for a big sibling-to-be.

For a child under three, short sentences are enough: the baby is small, sleeps a lot and sometimes cries. A four-year-old wants to be the one who knows and can. A seven- or nine-year-old can cope with hearing that it may be boring when the grown-ups are tired – and that it passes. Older children appreciate a story where they genuinely solve something for the family.

After reading, talk about what your child was like as a baby. Dig out a photo from back then. Most children love hearing that they were once that small too. Some will want the book every night while you wait, while others forget it for weeks and only fetch it once the baby is home. Either way works.

You fill in the child's name, age and what they like, and upload a photo. The story about becoming a big brother or sister is written for your very own child, and the thirteen pictures and the cover are drawn from the photo in the style you choose. Brothers and sisters, parents, grandparents or the pet can come along, up to five characters. If you would like to include something that has happened lately, a trip or a lost tooth, just write it and it is woven in.

The eBook is ready a few minutes after payment. Read it, change the text and ask for new pictures until you are happy. Then order it as an A4 hardback book, printed and sent to your door, or straight to the child as a gift. Do add the audiobook or the colouring pages. Start creating the book or read more about the prices. Would you like to see a finished book before you decide? Browse our example books.