My latest book project is a bit different from the other traditional books I have worked on. The Story of Me is a bedtime book of rhymes about how a baby came to be born.

 

The different part is that readers can get a 'personalised' version of it printed specially for their child. Parents can choose the family they most resemble, add a dedication and their own names, and get a printed book unique to themselves!

 

 

This was one of those projects that required a good amount of digital tinkering around to make different options in the same illustration. While I usually love making my art as a whole on paper, this one involved sheets and sheets of tracing paper and putting it all together in digital layers.

 

 

You can try playing with it online, and your customised preview is free to see! Eventually, there will be more options, including choosing individual characters and family types, adding personal photographs, etc.

 

Part of the book proceeds go to Room to Read, a non-profit working to provide quality education to children in low-income communities. More on the Manimal Tales website.