In a simpler time—before mobile careers fractured generations from one another and electronic entertainment supplanted family time—children sat at the knees of their grandparents and

These days, we have to work harder to create what once came so naturally. With two-career households, group daycare, geographically-distant grandparents, and dazzling digital toys and media, it is difficult to take advantage of the singular opportunity offered by those early, formative years to help shape a young person’s understanding of family history and sense of self.  Given the realities of contemporary American life, young children know all about Thomas the Train, Dora the Explorer, and Disney characters, and older children know all about Marvel superheroes Star Wars—but not the stories of their own grandparents. The magical sway of a beloved childhood book lasts a lifetime. Why not use that special story time to share with the child the stories and pictures of a grandparent? Books are a powerful medium for keeping stories alive.

A Legacy Storybook Picture Book uses the time-tested medium of the children’s book and the beloved ritual of story time. Children cherish the one-on-one cuddle-time, in a warm lap, with a soothing voice, and the opportunity to learn and be entertained in a safe and affirming way. For this reason, books read to a child during these sacred times exercise a powerful hold that lingers into adulthood. In the reading and re-reading of favorite books, the illustrations marinate in a child’s imagination, and the words seep into their memories. In fact, toddlers experimenting with budding speech often pluck out lines memorized from beloved books and interweave them into imaginative play and into early experiments with dialogue. If you were to come across one of your own beloved childhood books today, you’d likely sense again those warm feelings of security and contentment you felt as a child.

Take a look at example Young Adult Novels and Picture Books.