LittleTaleGuide
Personalized books for adults: how to choose one
Most personalized books are made for children and quietly adjusted for grown-ups. Here is what separates the one an adult keeps from the one that ends up in a drawer.
The three kinds of personalized book
A personalized book is a book made for one reader, with that reader’s name, likeness or story built into its pages. Almost every personalized book for an adult is one of three things, and it helps to know which one you are looking at before comparing prices.
- Name-in-the-story books. A story already written and illustrated, with the name printed into it. Some let you pick hair color and skin tone from a menu, so the character is a close-ish match rather than a likeness.
- Question-and-answer books. You answer prompts — how you met, favorite memories, the reasons you love the person — and the book is built from your answers. They are only as good as what you write.
- Books drawn from a photo. The illustrations are made from a photograph, so the face, hair, glasses and often the clothes are the real person’s. This is the kind LittleTale makes.
None of them is best for everyone. A question-and-answer book suits a partner who loves hearing the reasons; a book drawn from a photo suits someone who would rather step into a story than read a list of compliments.
What makes one work for an adult
Children are delighted by their own name on a page. Adults need more before a book earns a place on a shelf.
- A real likeness. A cartoon with matching hair color reads as a novelty. A character who is recognizably the person reads as a gift.
- A story with a premise. Something has to happen: a market that was not on the street an hour ago, a machine that has slept for a hundred years. A string of compliments is a card, not a book.
- Art you would leave out. Look at a finished sample, not the cover alone, and ask whether you would be happy for someone to see it on a table.
- A format that fits the person. Someone who reads on a phone will open a link on the day; someone who keeps things will want paper.
Printed or digital?
A printed hardcover is an object, and objects feel substantial. It also takes time to print and ship, usually days rather than minutes, and longer in December.
A digital book arrives as a link, can be read on any phone and cannot be lost in the post. The better ones include a print-quality PDF, so it can still become paper, which matters for a first wedding anniversary, where paper is the traditional gift in the United States. LittleTale books are digital: read online from a private link and kept as a PDF, which you can print at home or at a print shop.
Choosing the story
Match the story to the person’s temperament rather than the occasion. A birthday does not need a birthday story.
- For someone who notices everything: The Midnight Detective.
- For someone who never stops training: One More Round.
- For someone gentle: The Egg in the Attic.
- For someone who would rather laugh: The Great Snack Heist.
A checklist before you buy
- Do you see the character before the pages are made?
- Can you ask for a correction if the likeness is off?
- What happens if it is still wrong: a remake, or your money back?
- How long until it is ready, and how does it arrive?
- Can the person keep it: a PDF, a print, or only a web page?
- What happens to the photo you upload?
With LittleTale, you see the character free before you pay, one correction is included, and you pay nothing if it still is not right. The photo is used to draw the character and for nothing else.
Are personalized books only for children?
No. Many are written for children, but books for adults are a growing shelf: partners, parents, grandparents, friends and pets. What matters is choosing one whose story and art suit a grown-up reader.
Is a personalized book a good gift for a man?
It works best when the story fits the person rather than the occasion: a crew captain who is completely lost, a boxer who stays after everyone has gone home, a machine that has been asleep for a hundred years.
