The First Morning of the Year - the cover, with your child as the heroInes's First Morning
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The First Morning of the Year

Free preview - see your child before you pay
Ages 2-4Ages 4-6Ages 6-8New Year
from $14.90free preview first

A brand-new year, still completely blank, and your child is the first one awake to leave a footprint in it.

Formats and prices for The First Morning of the Year
FormatPriceWhat you get
Digital$14.90Read tonight, any device
Softcover$38.90Printed keepsake
Hardcover$42.90Premium keepsake

Free preview, no card required - see your child as the hero before you pay.

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  • Truly their faceBuilt from one photo, recognizable across all 12 chapters.
  • 12 illustrated chaptersA real story arc, warm hyper-realistic art.
  • Ready in minutesPreview free tonight - pay only if you love it.
A peek inside

How the adventure unfolds

These are just sample lines. Your book is written fresh for your child - their name woven through every page, with the words, sentence length and tone tuned to their age, and shaped by the story, interests and details you choose.

A hallway at first light with every door shut, and one child already fully dressed.
Chapter One

Nobody Else Awake

Your child woke first into a brand-new year that was still completely blank, and completely quiet.

A hallway at first light with every door shut, and one child already fully dressed.

A single set of footprints across an untouched garden, going nowhere in particular.
Chapter Two

The First Footprint

The frost on the grass had not been stepped on yet, so your child stepped on it, on purpose, twice.

A single set of footprints across an untouched garden, going nowhere in particular.

A calendar on the wall, entirely empty, being looked at from a chair pulled over to it.
Chapter Three

Three Hundred and Sixty-Four More

One day of the new year was used up, and your child thought about all the ones still folded up and waiting.

A calendar on the wall, entirely empty, being looked at from a chair pulled over to it.

These three sample the opening, middle and ending of a 12-chapter book. All twelve are drawn with your child in them when the book is made: the cover and chapter one free in your preview, the remaining eleven once you order.

Is this the one?

Who the First Morning of the Year is for

The First Morning of the Year is the quiet counterpart to the fireworks books. Everybody else is asleep, the year is completely blank, and your child is the first one into it. It suits an early riser, and it is the one to choose if your family does not do midnight at all.

Two to eight. A three-year-old enjoys being the only one awake, which is a real pleasure at that age. From six the blankness of the year becomes an idea rather than a description, and the last chapter, with three hundred and sixty-four days still to come, does something. Reading level chosen at setup.

For Ido, who is awake before everybody every day of the year and always has been.
Every book opens on a dedication page. You write your own - this is one that suits this story.
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Common questions

What age is The First Morning of the Year for?

The First Morning of the Year is written for ages 2-8. The story is generated at the reading level you pick during setup, so the same book works at the younger or older end of that range.

How is The First Morning of the Year personalized?

You upload one photo of your child. That photo becomes the illustrated hero - same face shape, hair and skin tone - and stays recognizable across all 12 chapters. Their name, age and a dedication are woven in too.

How long is the book, and what formats are there?

Twelve illustrated chapters, one full-page illustration per chapter. Digital is $14.90, softcover $38.90 and hardcover $42.90 plus shipping; the hardcover is a 8x8 inch matt-laminated keepsake.

Can I see it before I pay?

Yes. The cover and the whole first chapter - artwork included - are generated free. You only pay if you want the remaining eleven chapters.

Will it actually look like them?

  • Reference portrait: Deep brown skin, tightly coiled hair, age 5The illustrated character kept from it: Deep brown skin, tightly coiled hairDeep brown skin, tightly coiled hair
  • Reference portrait: Fine, fair, barely-there hair, age 1The illustrated character kept from it: Fine, fair, barely-there hairFine, fair, barely-there hair
  • Reference portrait: Straight black hair with a fringe, age 7The illustrated character kept from it: Straight black hair with a fringeStraight black hair with a fringe
  • Reference portrait: Curly ginger hair and freckles, age 4The illustrated character kept from it: Curly ginger hair and frecklesCurly ginger hair and freckles
  • Reference portrait: Round glasses, age 6The illustrated character kept from it: Round glassesRound glasses
  • Reference portrait: Long braids with beads, age 8The illustrated character kept from it: Long braids with beadsLong braids with beads
  • Reference portrait: A visible hearing aid, age 5The illustrated character kept from it: A visible hearing aidA visible hearing aid
  • Reference portrait: A baby with no hair, 6 monthsThe illustrated character kept from it: A baby with no hairA baby with no hair

Skin tone, hair texture and freckles all carried through - including the cases most generators get wrong. See it up close

See inside a finished bookWhat happens to the photoHow we compare

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