Every picture in this little board book looks hand stitched, because the originals were: bears, butterflies, trains and teddy bears rendered in real embroidery, photographed thread by thread, and paired with their first words. Babies stare at the texture, toddlers name the pictures, and the needlework gives it a warmth that flat cartoon clipart never manages.

The padded cover is soft to grab and sturdy enough to survive being loved the wrong way, and at just over 5 by 6 inches it is genuinely sized for a small pair of hands. Words run across favorite themes: animals, toys, nature and more, with a page design calm enough that the youngest readers are not overwhelmed.

Part of the same bestselling crafty series as the quilted and crochet editions, so it stacks beautifully into a baby shower gift with its siblings, or stands alone as the first word book that does not look like every other first word book.