Their photo, your wordsHow it works
Tell us about them
Their name, their age, one thing you love.
Read it before you pay
The whole story and the cover. Change any line.
We make the book
A person checks every page. Hardcover, to your door.
Can I put all my grandchildren in one book?
Yes, up to 6 people fit in one book, each drawn from their own photo. 3 people are included in the price, then each person from the fourth is $15. Grandparents count as people too, so four grandchildren plus Nan and Pop is the most one book holds. With five or more grandchildren, make it one book each, or two shared books.
One book each is the strongest “it’s me” moment: their own name on the cover, their own shelf. A shared book suits cousins who spend every holiday together, and two in one book is ordinary: one nanny’s first-birthday book held both grandsons, the one-year-old and his eight-year-old brother, in the family’s footy colours.
One grandmother wrote a story for her four-year-old grandson, which we made into his book. His seven-year-old brother then asked for one of his own, so she wrote him a longer one. Her words on the first: “Recently, I wrote a story for my four year-old grandson, which was adapted by Paperlake into a delightful book.” Our answer to her second order: “You will be able to customise any part of the story you like.”
One book each
Their own story, their own photo, their own name on the cover
Or all in one
Up to 6 people. 3 included, then $15 each
A copy for your house
A second copy of the same book, $39
Getting it fair between grandchildren
- Each book gets its own three or four details. The trap is one brief copied for everyone. Even siblings have different small things.
- Name everyone you want in the book, parents included. One grandmother elsewhere ordered four books that named granny, dad and the baby brother, and left mum out of all four. The people in the book are exactly the people you name.
- A different photo for each child. One clear photo of each face.
- Don’t hand one grandchild a book while the others watch. If the budget spreads the books out, give each on their own birthday, then Christmas for the ones whose birthdays have passed. For brothers, sisters and cousins in one story, see sibling books.
A gift for grandchildren who live far away
A book posts straight to the grandchild, wherever they are in Australia. We deliver within Australia only for now: a grandparent interstate orders here and sends it to the grandchild’s address, and a grandparent overseas can do the same. A grandchild overseas is the one we can’t post to yet; one of our buyers flew a book to the United States in their suitcase. Where it goes and when is on the shipping page.
The photo is the only thing you need from the family: ask the parents to text one recent, clear photo of the child’s face. Toddlers change fast, so recent matters.
You can be in the pictures too, from your own photo. We never draw a person by guessing, so with no photo of you, you live in the words and the dedication instead. Most grandparents choose exactly that: the child as the star, the grandparent signing the inside cover.
The distance itself can go in the story. One toddler’s book came from a family that had moved away from most of her extended family, and the brief told us she loves video calls with them. So the story can hold the video call and the visit that is coming.
Posts anywhere in Australia
Straight to the grandchild's address
You, in the pictures
Add your own photo. No photo, and you live in the words
Read it together on a call
The Keepsake's online copy opens on any phone
Reading the same book from two houses
The Keepsake ($119) includes an online copy of the book: one link that opens the whole finished book on any phone, for whoever is on the other end of the call. Or add a second printed copy for your own house ($39). Either way, both ends of the call hold the same pages. Western Sydney University researchers who studied grandparent video calls suggest setting aside books to read on them, and keeping on reading longer books “with older children” across calls (their advice).
The dedication carries the distance best. Two aunties in Australia wrote to their nephew overseas: “We live far away under the bright Australian sun, but we think of you every day, and you are always close in our hearts.”
A book about the two of you, or a book for Nan
The same book runs the other way: the grandchild stars, Nan and Pop are in the pictures with them, and the parents or the grandchild sign the dedication. Nan and Pop are drawn from their own photos, as themselves, not built from hair and skin colour menus. Tell us the day you share, and the book is about it: the walk to the park, Poppy’s shed, the biscuits.
The grandchild is the star
Nan and Pop in the pictures beside them, from their photos
The dedication is the gift
Signed by the parents, or in the grandchild's own words
One for each house
A second copy, $39, so Nan keeps hers
It suits Grandparents Day (the last Sunday in October), Christmas, the grandparent’s birthday, and Mother’s and Father’s Day.
The photo question, answered for the parents
Parents often ask before they send a photo. Here is what to tell them.
One clear photo
Their face in good light. A phone snap is fine
A family photo works
You frame just their face when you add it
Used only for this book
We use the photo only to make this book
The options compared
A Paperlakebook is a full painted scene across every spread, drawn from your family’s photos in one house style, around a story written for your grandchild from what you tell us. You read it all before you pay, and a person checks every book before it prints. The other grandparent books on the shelf, checked October 2026:
| Service | People in one book | How they're drawn | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paperlake | Up to 6, grandparents included | A painted scene across each spread, each person from their own photo | The story is written for your grandchild; you read it all before you pay |
| My Story Tale | One or two grandparents and the grandchild | Illustrated characters | 24 pages, ships within 3 working days from Australia, free shipping on 3 or more books |
| Librio | One grandparent, one or two grandchildren | Avatar options, down to glasses and a hearing aid | Whole-book preview, 25% off two or more books |
| Hooray Heroes | Nan, Grandpa or both with up to three grandkids, or Nana with up to five | Avatars built from options | Grandparent books listed as coming soon in Australia on 1 October 2026; ships in 3 business days (their claim) |
| Dinkleboo | One child, up to two grandparents | Name and avatar | Rhyming, made in Australia, preview the whole story |
- People in one book
- Up to 6, grandparents included
- How they're drawn
- A painted scene across each spread, each person from their own photo
- Worth knowing
- The story is written for your grandchild; you read it all before you pay
- People in one book
- One or two grandparents and the grandchild
- How they're drawn
- Illustrated characters
- Worth knowing
- 24 pages, ships within 3 working days from Australia, free shipping on 3 or more books
- People in one book
- One grandparent, one or two grandchildren
- How they're drawn
- Avatar options, down to glasses and a hearing aid
- Worth knowing
- Whole-book preview, 25% off two or more books
- People in one book
- Nan, Grandpa or both with up to three grandkids, or Nana with up to five
- How they're drawn
- Avatars built from options
- Worth knowing
- Grandparent books listed as coming soon in Australia on 1 October 2026; ships in 3 business days (their claim)
- People in one book
- One child, up to two grandparents
- How they're drawn
- Name and avatar
- Worth knowing
- Rhyming, made in Australia, preview the whole story
None of them draws the grandparent from a photo; each prints its own story with your names in it.
What to put in the brief that only you could write
When you tell us about your grandchild, this is the part that decides whether the book reads as a keepsake. Aim for three or four specific details in your own voice, the kind a parent might not think to mention. Adjectives like “loving” or “curious” could be true of any child.
- The name they go by, and your nickname for them.If everyone calls Eleanor “Nellie”, that is the name in the book. “Bug”, “Possum”, “Mr Mim”: a family nickname is gold for the story.
- One memory you share. The pancake Sundays, the walk to the milk bar, the stick she always picks up to carry. One sentence is enough.
- A place that matters to you both. Your back garden, the beach you visit, the station where you wave to the trains.
- The small thing they always do. Reads with a torch under the blanket, names every dog they pass, wears the dinosaur gumboots in summer.
The simple rule: if a detail could be true of any kid, leave it out. If only your grandchild does it, put it in. A book that says she is “kind, smart and loved” is a greeting card. A book that says she leaves snacks on the windowsill for the magpies is about her.
Already written their story yourself? Paste it in and we’ll use your words exactly, split across the pages. The grandmother above wrote both her grandsons’ stories.
Before you finish, check the spelling of their name. Phones autocorrect uncommon names (Aroha, Saoirse, Nikau) into common ones, and the name in the book is the name you typed. You read the whole story before you pay, so you can fix it then too.
Grandparent inscriptions that work
The inside cover is where the gift becomes a keepsake. Good inscriptions name something specific, stay short and sign off with the name the grandchild calls you. A few examples of the shape:
- For Nellie, on her 4th birthday. The summer you named the magpies in our garden, you called the loud one Cheeky. Wherever you go, I hope you stay loud and curious like that. With all my love, Nan.
- For Sam. Pop bought the dinosaur gumboots in 2024 and you have not taken them off since. This book is for you, the dinosaur in the family. Pop xx
- For Aroha. You arrived during the longest week of our lives and made everything better. Granny will read this with you every Sunday she gets to spend with you. Yours always, Granny.
Open with a memory or a detail, end with one line of feeling, sign off with your name as they say it. One short paragraph at most; anything longer starts to compete with the story. Skip rhymes, “my one and only little angel” (especially with other grandchildren around), comparisons with another grandchild, and promises that age badly, such as “I will read this with you every night”.
The occasions a grandparent book fits best
- Birthday. The natural fit: a book about one child on their day. Up to 3 days to make, then up to 10 business days in the post, so order about three weeks before.
- Christmas. Order by Monday 30 November and every book arrives before Christmas. Our Christmas books page has the dates for every service.
- Grandparents Day. The last Sunday in October. Check the arrival date on the price screen against the calendar before you order.
- A gift to Nan or Pop.A book about the grandchild and their grandparent, given the other way: Grandparents Day, their birthday, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day.
- A “just because” Sunday. A book given on an ordinary visit, about the routine you share (the walk, the back garden), carries no expectation.
- Firsts and hard times. A first Christmas, starting kindy, a new sibling. After a hard stretch (a move, a hospital stay), let the child be the brave one in their own story and keep the meaning in the inscription.
Choosing the right book for each age
- Babies (under 1). The book is really a keepsake for the parents: how they looked, and who was around them, at that age.
- Toddlers (1 to 3). Short sentences and big pictures. They love seeing their own name on the page.
- Ages 4 to 5. The sweet spot. They understand the story is about them and want it read over and over.
- Ages 6 to 8. The story has to hold up on its own. Past about 9, a book about themselves can feel babyish; a memory book in your own hand may suit better.
More in our guide to personalised books by age.
We publish this guide and include ourselves alongside four other services. How we compare is on the methodology page, and every brand is in our comparison of personalised books in Australia.
Sources
Prices and claims for My Story Tale, Librio, Hooray Heroes and Dinkleboo were checked on their Australian pages, October 2026.
