Book dedication examples for your grandchildren
A dedication to your grandchildren is a note they may read again when they are grown, so their names matter more than clever wording. Below are examples sorted by tone. Choose one to see it on the page, or write your own.
By the Proselis team · Updated
Short dedications to your grandchildren
For Ava, Noah, and Lily.
To my grandchildren, my best chapter.
For the grandkids, with love.
For Ava. Someday you’ll read this.
For every one of my grandchildren, present and future.
Heartfelt dedications to your grandchildren
For my grandchildren, who asked for one more story every visit. Here are a few hundred more.
To Noah and Lily, so you’ll know where some of your family’s stories came from.
For my grandchildren, who will find this on a shelf someday and know I was thinking of them.
To Ava, Noah, and Lily, the reasons I finally finished.
For my grandchildren, in the hope that you write your own stories down too.
Funny dedications to your grandchildren
For my grandchildren, who think my stories are too long. This one has chapters, so you can stop anytime.
To Noah, who wanted more dragons. There are now four.
For the grandkids, who have heard most of these stories at least ten times. Now you can read them instead.
Dedications to your grandchildren for a family history
These suit memoirs and family histories written for the next generation.
For my grandchildren, so the stories outlast the storyteller.
To Ava, Noah, and Lily, who will carry these names forward.
For the grandchildren and the grandchildren after them.
How do you write a dedication to your grandchildren?
Name each grandchild so every one of them can find their name years from now. If you have many, “For my grandchildren” keeps it fair, and you can name each one in the acknowledgments.
What if more grandchildren come along later?
Wording such as “For my grandchildren, present and future” leaves room for everyone. You can also update the dedication in a later edition, which is simple with a print-on-demand book.
Where does the dedication go?
In a printed book, the dedication gets its own right-hand page after the copyright page, usually centered about a third of the way down. Some books share that page with the epigraph. In an ebook, it comes right after the copyright page.
How long should a dedication be?
Most are one or two lines. Anything longer usually belongs in the acknowledgments at the back, where you can thank everyone by name.
Questions
In what order should I list my grandchildren?
Birth order is the most common choice and the hardest to argue with. Alphabetical order works too.
Should a family history be dedicated to the grandchildren?
It often is, because they are the readers it’s written for. A line that says so, such as “so the stories outlast the storyteller,” tells everyone why the book exists.
Can I dedicate a book to more than one person?
Yes. Name them together, as in “For Maya and Leo,” or give each person a line. If the list grows past three or four names, move your thanks to the acknowledgments.
Do I have to include a dedication?
No. Many books have none. Leave it out if nobody comes to mind, because a forced dedication shows.
Should the dedication be in italics?
It’s common but not required. Most dedications are centered and set in italic or small type so they stand apart from the text.
Give your dedication its own page
Proselis has a dedication page ready in its Front Matter menu, so your dedication lands in the right place in your EPUB and print PDF. Writing is free. Publishing a book as an EPUB and a print-ready PDF is a one-time $20.