What to write in a child’s book
30 lines you can use as they are. Put their name in and every line below fills itself in.
What to write in a book for a baby shower
Bringing a book instead of a card is now the convention at most showers, and the parents keep every one. Write to the BABY, not to the parents - it is the child who will read it in six years and find out who was there before they arrived.
To {name}, who we were all waiting for. Welcome to the world.
warmWe picked this before we met you. We already knew we would like you.
warmFor {name} — your first book, from someone who is very glad you are here.
shortRead this one to your parents when they cannot sleep. They will need it.
funny
{name} and {age} are placeholders. Type a name above and they fill in everywhere.
Three things that make one worth keeping
Write to the child
Not to their parents. It is the child who will read it at sixteen and find out who was in the room.
Say who you are
“Grandma” beats a signature they will not recognise in a decade. Name the relationship, not just yourself.
Add the date
The one detail nobody regrets and almost everybody forgets. It turns a nice line into a record.
Want the reasoning rather than the lines?Read the full dedication guide
Common questions
What should I write in a child's book?
Write to the child rather than to their parents, say who you are, and add the date. Those three things are what makes a dedication worth keeping in twenty years - not how clever the wording is. Pick a line below and change it until it sounds like you.
Where do I write the dedication?
On the first blank page inside the front cover, in pen. Pencil fades and biro is what almost every kept childhood book is signed in.
How long should a book dedication be?
One or two lines. The dedications that get read again are short enough to take in at a glance while the child is waiting for the story to start.
Is it strange to write in a book that is a gift?
It is the opposite - an unsigned book is just a book, and a signed one is a record of who gave it and when. It is the single thing that stops a gifted book being passed on.
Last updated:
Writing in a book you are having made? The dedication is page one, before the story starts.
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