I don't want my kids to read books...
said no parent ever!
The Problem
Literacy rates across OECD countries have been declining since 2012.
Even more, we've seen firsthand how social media and bite-sized dopamine hits are undermining our children's ability to deeply engage with text. We're on a mission to change that.
We're a small, founder-led team. Several of us are parents who've personally seen the challenges our kids face. We know that without meaningful, immersive reading experiences, our children won't develop the skills and knowledge they'll need to navigate the complexities of the future.
Traditional publishing has struggled to keep pace, rarely challenging the "fast-food content culture" that's now a part of everyday life.
If we don't act now, we're heading towards an epidemic of intellectual obesity, where quick fixes replace deep, thoughtful understanding.
Meet the Founder
Nauris Dorbe
Founder, Blossom Reads
Hi, I'm Nauris.
I'm a dad of two. My six-year-old just started kindergarten, with all the chaos that brings. My one-year-old is still on my shoulders for most family walks. The last four years of being a parent are the reason Blossom Reads exists.
When my older son was small, I started watching the same thing every parent I know is watching. Kids whose attention spans shorten every year. Kids who pick a tablet over a book without thinking. I read the research. I tried the obvious fixes. Nothing I bought at a bookshop was strong enough to compete with a feed.
What I kept coming back to was this. Kids will reach for a book on their own, again and again, if the book feels like it is about them. Not 'personalised' with their name swapped in. Actually about them. Their face. Their world. A story that fits where they are right now in their reading.
I built the smallest version of that in early 2023, sent it to friends with kids, watched what happened, and kept going.
That is what Blossom Reads is. Every book is printed, posted to your door, written for your child specifically, and illustrated to look like them. There is no app. There is no feed. There is no subscription. The book sits on the shelf and gets pulled out again and again. That is the whole job.
I want to be honest about the AI part, because this is where most personalised book companies are getting it wrong right now.
I have spent eleven years building production AI systems, including for Ericsson, Brainbase, and a public-sector deployment that has been running in production since 2017. I know exactly how AI is being used badly with children today: bulk-generated content with no editorial layer, models that produce something that looks fine on a quick glance and falls apart on the second read. Blossom Reads uses AI heavily, but applied with care. It matches an illustrated character to your child's photos. It fits a story to their reading stage and interests. It makes sure no two books we ever ship are the same. And the human part of the job, which I take more seriously, is the editorial review on every order before it prints.
We are still small. I personally read most of the support emails. If a book is not right when you preview it, I will rewrite it, regenerate the illustrations, or refund you. That promise is not buried in the small print. It is the only way I want to run this.
Books print from partners in the US and the UK depending on where you order from, so most orders ship within a week.
If you want to talk, I am easy to find on LinkedIn, or you can write to me at nauris.dorbe@blossomreads.com. I read every email.
The Vision and Mission
At Blossom Reads, we're determined to revolutionise the way children interact with stories. We build on literature written by authors over centuries and shape it to address the needs and intellectual challenges of adults of tomorrow in a deeply personalised way. Thus giving rise to the category of Fun-ctional Literature.
Join us in shaping the future, one story at a time.
The Roadmap
Delivering personalised books that transform each child into the hero of their own captivating story, igniting their passion for reading.
Creating deeply contextual stories enriched by personal experiences, friendships, histories, and licensed characters, portrayed vividly in both text and illustrations.
Crafting fully bespoke stories and illustrations presented in dynamic, adaptive layouts that evolve alongside the reader's interests and growth.
Incorporating advanced research and insights to elevate the educational and developmental impact of our stories.
Producing sensory-rich physical books that engage children's senses, deepening their interaction and connection with the stories.