Example book · For Grandma Ruth, age 71
Ruth and the Glue-Gun Galleon
Ruth can make anything out of a cardboard box. Tonight she makes a ship, and it flies.
Start a story like thisAbout the story
Grandma Ruth keeps her glue gun plugged in and her recycling bin full, because you never know when you'll need a castle or a rocket.
When her grandkids' paper boats keep sinking in the rain gutter, she promises them a real ship by morning. She builds it at the kitchen table out of boxes, buttons, ribbon and one very old umbrella. At midnight it creaks, lifts off the floor, and sails out the window over the rooftops.
Ruth is the only one who can steer it. Before sunrise she has to bring it home, pick up a lost kite, and get seven grandchildren back into bed without anyone noticing.
What Ellen told us
This is all it took to start. We followed up with a few questions by email, then wrote the story.
"Grandma turns every box into a castle or a rocket. Her glue gun is always plugged in. She taught all of us how to make things."
Everything that came with Ruth's book
Every book includes all of this. Share one piece or all of them, with whoever you like.
The full printed book
96 pages, bound, with Ruth's name on the cover. It arrived in about 2 to 3 weeks.
A story written for Ruth
It's written to be read aloud to little kids, so Ruth can read it to her great-grandkids. All seven grandkids are in it.
The audiobook, in Ellen's voice
Ellen narrated it so Ruth could listen while she works on her projects.
A version to download
The same book as a PDF and as a Kindle file, for a phone, a tablet or an e-reader.
A short video summary
About 3 minutes. The whole family watched it together at Thanksgiving.
A dedication and a foreword
For Grandma Ruth, who taught us that anything can be something.
All seven grandkids signed the foreword.
Share it the way you want
Ellen shared the book with all seven grandkids and their parents, so everyone has the audiobook and the video.