Talking with Thalia
Talking with Thalia: Turning Family Memories Into Personalized Storybooks
Have you heard of Bookestry? It’s an app that uses artificial intelligence, family photos, and personal memories to create custom illustrated children’s books.
Bookestry creator Rita Chen says the process is simple. Families provide a brief description of their story and upload a few photos. The app then creates a personalized story and illustrations that reflect the family’s experiences.
Chen says the idea was inspired by her own daughter, who was just two years old when Chen and her husband began thinking about the stories and lessons they wanted to pass down.
One book was inspired by Chen’s engineering background and featured her daughter learning how to fix things around the house. When the little girl later encountered a broken toy, she remembered the lesson from the book and proudly said, “I’m an engineer. I can fix this.”
Bookestry can also be used to preserve family memories and introduce children to relatives they may never have had the opportunity to meet. Chen says parents are also using the books to help children prepare for major transitions, including starting a new school or adjusting to a new routine.
While some people may have concerns about artificial intelligence, Chen says Bookestry tests the technology to make sure it is both safe and effective. She says AI allows the company to create stories that are truly unique to each family rather than simply customizing a pre-written story.
Once a family is happy with its book, it can be ordered as a hardcover copy, which typically arrives in about two weeks.
TO ORDER OR LEARN MORE: Bookestry.com
By: Thalia Hayden
September 8, 2026
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