I recently blogged about what a wicked mother I am, and my plans to blag my way through Dexter’s first birthday. It’s so tough deciding what to buy for a first birthday - friends and family are bound to go overboard on clothes, you already have enough toys to open a charity shop in your lounge, and they’re too young for bikes and mini scooters. My initial instinct was to simply not bother, but looking at his little face every morning, I can’t stand the thought of not getting him anything.

When Penwizard contacted me about reviewing a personalised Peppa Pig book, I was really excited. I’ve read dozens of reviews on Penwizard Personalised Publishing before, and had always meant to Dex a book. I love the idea of reading him a story that he features in and was instantly drawn to the Peppa Goes to Your Childs Party book - could this be any more appropriate?

Your child stars in the words and pictures of her own personalised birthday book sharing her birthday with Peppa Pig and George. The three of them deliver party invitations with Mr. Zebra in his van before being joined by Suzy Sheep, Danny Dog, Rebecca Rabbit, Pedro Pony, Emily Elephant and Candy Cat at your child’s birthday party.

How seriously cute is this?! Could this be the perfect present to buy a birthday boy or girl? At just £14.99 it’s a great value little keepsake for tiny tots to mark their special day, from mummy and daddy, or indeed grandparents.

Creating the personalised book was easy. Penwizard have a 1 page editing suite so you are not scrolling through pages and pages to complete the process. You can specify your childs gender, hair, skin, and eye colour, add or remove glasses, and of course enter the all important name and age. This suite is so simple and faff-free that it takes less than a minute to move through to the checkout.

Additional features I simply loved was the option to add a short message to your child on page 1. This is an extra layer of personalisation and just makes the gift extra special. I have a memory box for Dexter that is filled with things I’ve collected throughout his life; from sea shells from holiday, to his birth band, to newspapers from the day he was born. I’m sure in a few years time this book will make its way into his box - it’s the first ever book that has been ‘dedicated to him’ (hopefully he’ll marry the next J K Rowling, or publish his own auto biography when he plays rugby for England and there’ll be plenty more!).

The book is 21 x 28 cm, with a glossy cover, which is great for reading to children. The illustrations on all the pages cover the entire page so there’s plenty for tiny readers to absorb and engage with. There’s also a healthy amount of text spread over 24 pages which is good to see in a children’s book. I’m often offering Dexter 4 books a night as they’re over so quickly.

All in all, I’d have to see I’m impressed. My only criticism *** would be that I’d like to see the books offered in hardback too. Dexter has a tendency to eat paper (his daddy’s tax return was a personal highlight) so this tends to deter him from lunging at the pages with the fervour of an Augustus Gloop reincarnation let loose in a Haribo factory. As a book to read with supervision, and cherish for a life-time though, it’s a big thumbs up from us.

*** I’m told this will be happening in just a few weeks and you’ll be able to have them in hardback - Whoop!!!!

There are plenty of other titles available including: Personalised Peppa Pig: Your child and Peppa go to Playgroup, Personalised Peppa Pig: Peppa and Your Child go Swimming, Personalised Football Book: Your Child Plays for <Insert Team>, Personalised Wizard Book: Your Child at Wizard School, Personalised Fifi Books: Your Child in Flowertot Garden.

If you’d like to order one, head on over to the website, follow Penwizard on Twitter, and like them on Facebook. There are also a number of other reviews available on their G+ page (well done Penwizard for embracing social media!).

DISCLAIMER: Thanks to Penwizard we received this book in time for Dexter’s birthday. This was complimentary in return for this review, and spreading the word about their fabulous range of personalised books. Thanks Penwizard - you’ve made my little birthday boy very happy!