A book themed baby shower, or storybook baby shower, asks guests to bring a children’s book instead of a card: stacks of books do the decorating, and the family goes home with a first library. These book themed baby shower ideas are for 20 guests, with the wording, the games, the menu and what each costs.
The decorations, centerpieces, food and drinks, desserts, game and activity supplies and one favor a guest (the bookmarks) come to about $298 for 20 guests, or $15 a guest.
Not counted: pantry staples, dishes, printing at home, what you borrow or already have, and the books guests bring.
In this guide
In this guide
Bring a book instead of a card: wording to copy
Ask once, on the invitation: “Instead of a card, please bring a favorite picture book with a note inside for the baby.” Make it optional, and say well-loved copies are welcome.
one line to copy
1. Ask for a book instead of a card, in one line
One line on the invitation is enough. Pick the one that sounds like you, swap in your details, and copy it.
“Instead of a card, please bring a favorite picture book for the baby.”
“We’d love to start the baby’s first library. In place of a card, please bring a book you loved as a child.”
“Instead of a card, please bring a book, signed inside the cover where little eyes will look.”
“Skip the card: write your message inside the front cover of a favorite children’s book instead.”
“Please bring a book instead of a card. Well-loved copies from your own shelf are more than welcome.”
“The registry is at [registry link]. Instead of a card, we’d love a children’s book with a note inside.”
“Everyone’s invited to help build the baby’s first library: instead of a card, bring a favorite children’s book with a note inside.”
“See you Saturday! Instead of a card, bring a picture book with a note inside for the baby, if you can. New or well-loved, any book is perfect.”
2. Ask guests to write a note inside the front cover
The note is the card. Guests write a line to the baby, sign it and date it, so the book carries the day for years.
- Where: the inside of the front cover, or the first blank page.
- What: why they chose that book, a wish for the baby, or the age they were when they loved it.
- Forgot? A pen and a few of the advice cards wait by the crate: tuck a note in with the book.
3. Welcome well-loved copies
A secondhand book can cost less than the card it replaces. Say on the invitation that secondhand copies are welcome, so guests can bring one from their own shelf or a used-book sale.
- New: Penguin Random House lists classic board books from $5.99 (Dr. Seuss’s ABC) to $11.99 (The Very Busy Spider, by Eric Carle), with Good Night, Gorilla at $9.99.
- A card: the baby shower cards in Hallmark’s online search ran from $2.50 to $7.59 on October 28, 2026.
- Secondhand: at the Friends of the Library sale in Dexter, Michigan, on October 3, 2026, children’s board books were 25 cents and children’s hardcovers 50 cents.
A request, not a rule
A cream, sage and honey palette that suits any baby
A book shower looks like a cozy library: cream paper, sage, honey and a little navy ink. None of it says boy or girl.
4. Cream, sage and honey, with navy ink
- Cream (#F6F1E6) for the tablecloth, the cake and the paper
- Old page (#D8C3A0), the tan of book pages, for the garland and the flowers
- Sage (#9CAF88) for napkins, ribbon and greenery
- Honey (#E3B45A) as the warm accent: the twine, the tea lights, the tags
- Navy ink (#2F3B55) for the lettering: the sign, the bookmarks and the cards
5. A welcome sign that reads “A new chapter begins”
A sign on an easel by the door, in navy letters on cream, with your own names in the brackets.
“A new chapter begins. Welcome to the baby shower for [names].”
- Print it: design it in any free editor and order a 16-by-20-inch satin poster from Walgreens Photo, $19.99, with same-day pickup at many stores.
- Stand it up: stick the poster to a 20-by-30-inch foam board ($1.99) with double-sided tape, trim the board, and set it on Hobby Lobby’s beechwood floor easel ($11.99).
- Or letter it by hand: pencil first, then a navy paint marker, the day before.
about 30 minutes
6. A garland of pages from a damaged book
Twenty-four book pages clipped to a length of twine, swagged over the door or along the food table.
- Buy: one damaged hardcover from a used-book sale (an adult hardcover was $1 at the Dexter sale), Hobby Lobby’s 250-foot spool of jute twine ($2.99) and its 24 mini wood clothespins ($2.49).
- Make: cut 24 pages from the book, trim each into a pennant, and clip them about an inch apart along about 14 feet of twine. About 30 minutes, any evening before.
- Hang it high: the clothespins are labeled as a choking hazard for children under 3.
Never a library book
Book baby shower decorations in five spots
Decorate the five places guests look: the door, the food table, the gift table, a reading nook and the guest tables. Thrifted books do most of the work.
Where the books come from: a Friends of the Library sale, a thrift store or your own shelves.
At the Dexter District Library’s Friends sale in Michigan on October 3, 2026, adult hardcovers were $1, children’s hardcovers 50 cents, and children’s paperbacks and board books 25 cents. Prices vary by sale and by store, so check the sale’s own page.
Decor shopping list for 20 guests
Total: $80.70.
Not included: a chair, a lamp and a blanket for the nook, a glue gun, tape and the family’s photos. The centerpieces have their own list below.
Prices are what Hobby Lobby, Hy-Vee (a Midwest grocery chain), Walgreens Photo and Amazon showed online on October 28, 2026, at the regular price, plus Penguin Random House’s list price for the board book and $1 a hardcover at a library used-book sale, before tax and shipping.
Amazon prices change often, so yours may differ.
7. Stacks of thrifted hardcovers under the platters
Three stacks of three hardcovers on the food table, each one lifting a platter, like a library cart set for lunch.
- Buy: nine adult hardcovers at a used-book sale, about $1 each. Pick cream, sage and navy spines.
- Jackets off: bare cloth covers look older and calmer, and a jacket slides. Keep the jackets to slip back on after the party.
- Good to know: set a placemat or a cutting board on top of each stack, so a spill lands on that, not on the book.
only the basket to buy
8. A reading nook: a chair, a lamp and a basket of board books
A corner with an armchair, a reading lamp and a blanket, and a low basket of board books from home for story time.
- You’ll need: a chair, a lamp and a blanket from home, and Hobby Lobby’s water hyacinth basket, about 9 by 7 inches ($6.99), sized for board books.
- During the shower: it’s where the kids’ story circle sits, and where a guest who needs a quiet minute can read.
9. A “Books for baby” crate with bookplates
On the gift table, a small wood crate for the bookplates and a pen, under a sign that reads “Books for baby”, and the books stacked beside it.
- Buy: Hobby Lobby’s pallet wood crate, 15 by 6 inches ($8.99), and a pack of 60 “This book belongs to” bookplate stickers, 2 by 2 inches ($6.99 on Amazon).
- How: guests set their book beside the crate, wrapped or in a gift bag. After the gifts, the family sticks a bookplate in each, ready for the baby’s name. The sign prints on a sheet of the activities’ cardstock.
10. Paper-page flowers in a jar
A dozen rolled paper roses, made from book pages, on wire stems in a mason jar on the gift table.
- Buy: Hobby Lobby’s 16-ounce mason jar ($3.29) and a pack of 70 green floral stem wires, 18 inches long ($4.99). The pages come from the garland’s book.
- Make 12: cut a 4-inch circle from a page, cut it into a spiral, and roll it up from the outside in. Dab hot glue on the base and push in a wire. About 5 minutes each.
- After: the extra wires make one more rose for the bud vase centerpiece.
11. Childhood photos of the guest of honor, tucked into open books
A few photos of the guest of honor as a child (or of each parent-to-be), each tucked into an open picture book on the table by the nook. Guests stop, smile and guess.
- You’ll need: four or five photos, borrowed from the family. Ask for copies, never the only print.
- Make: stand each book open on a shelf or a stack, with the photo slipped between two pages.
Battery lights only near paper
Book centerpieces you can make the night before
Each centerpiece takes 10 minutes or less: three stacked books and a bud vase, an open book and a battery tea light, or a board book and a small plush.
For 20 guests, plan three tables of six to eight, so three centerpieces. Make one of each, or three of the same, the night before.
Centerpiece supplies, one of each
Total: $31.25. Afterward, the board book joins the baby’s library, and the hardcovers go back on a shelf or to the next sale.
five minutes
12. Three stacked books with a bud vase on top
- You’ll need: three hardcovers ($1 each at the Dexter sale) and Hobby Lobby’s fluted glass bud vase, 8½ inches tall ($3.99), with one paper rose or a single fresh stem.
- Make: stack the books biggest to smallest, spines facing out, and stand the vase on top. Five minutes.
13. An open book beside a battery tea light in a jar
- You’ll need: a hardcover, Hobby Lobby’s 16-ounce mason jar ($3.29) and its six white LED tea lights ($3.99), batteries included.
- Make: open the book to the middle and curl two facing pages in toward the spine, tucking their edges into the fold, so they make a heart; or leave it flat. Set the jar beside it with two tea lights inside. Ten minutes.
- Good to know: each tea light runs on a coin battery, and Hobby Lobby’s label warns that a swallowed one can cause death or serious injury. Keep the spares in a drawer and the jar out of toddlers’ reach.
14. A board book standing up with a small plush animal
- You’ll need: a new board book, like Corduroy, by Don Freeman ($9.99, Viking), and Hobby Lobby’s 9-inch teddy bear plush ($5.99), to sit beside it like the bear in the story.
- Make: stand the board book half open, like a tent, and sit the bear against it. Two minutes.
- Good to know: the bear is labeled for ages 4 and up, with small parts, so it’s decor for the shelf, not a crib toy.
Book baby shower games, with the rules
Six book games, each 15 minutes or less: four for the whole room, one during the gifts and one for kids. Each comes with what to print, how to play and who wins.
Pick two for a two-hour shower, plus the bingo.
Coed crowd? Our baby shower games for couples has 51 more, with the rules.
15. Name the storybook from three clues
A card with 20 numbered sets of three clues. Guests write the title each set describes.
- Players: everyone, alone or in pairs.
- Time: about 10 minutes.
- You’ll need: one printed card a guest, with the clues below and a blank by each, and pens.
- How: no phones. At 10 minutes, guests swap cards and mark each other’s while you read the key.
- Variant: read the clues aloud, one at a time. The first guest to call out the right title scores a point.
- Winner: the most right titles. Tie? The first to name the author of number 20.
The 20 clues
Tap a clue to see its answer.
1. An egg on a leaf. A different fruit every day. A stomachache, then wings.
The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Eric Carle
2. A zookeeper’s keys go missing. The animals follow him home. His wife walks them back.
Good Night, Gorilla, Peggy Rathmann
3. A boy in a red snowsuit. Footprints and a snow angel. A snowball in a pocket that disappears.
The Snowy Day, Ezra Jack Keats
4. Suppertime. A mother dog looks behind every door and flap. Other animals hide where the puppy should be.
Where’s Spot?, Eric Hill
5. A bear in green overalls. A lost button. A night in a department store.
Corduroy, Don Freeman
6. A little llama in bed. A parent downstairs on the phone. Big feelings at bedtime.
Llama Llama Red Pajama, Anna Dewdney
7. Two ducks look for a home in Boston. Eight ducklings. A police officer stops the traffic.
Make Way for Ducklings, Robert McCloskey
8. A girl and her mother pick berries on a hill. So do a bear cub and its mother. They get mixed up.
Blueberries for Sal, Robert McCloskey
9. A bull who would rather smell flowers. A bee sting. A bullring in Madrid.
The Story of Ferdinand, Munro Leaf
10. A rabbit who doesn’t listen. A farmer’s vegetable garden. A lost jacket and a cup of chamomile tea.
The Tale of Peter Rabbit, Beatrix Potter
11. A grumpy character keeps refusing an odd-colored dish. He is chased with it everywhere. He finally tastes it.
Green Eggs and Ham, Dr. Seuss
12. Twelve girls in an old house in Paris. A teacher named Miss Clavel. A trip to the hospital.
Madeline, Ludwig Bemelmans
13. Dragons. Their favorite food. A warning about spicy salsa.
Dragons Love Tacos, Adam Rubin
14. A train of toys stuck before a mountain. Big engines say no. A small blue one tries.
The Little Engine That Could, Watty Piper
15. A winter night. A walk in the snow with Pa. A call to an owl.
Owl Moon, Jane Yolen
16. A badger who eats only one thing. Her parents serve it at every meal. Her friend’s lunch looks better.
Bread and Jam for Frances, Russell Hoban
17. A mouse gets a cookie. Then milk, then a straw. It ends where it began.
If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, Laura Numeroff
18. A town where meals fall from the sky. The food storms get bigger. A grandpa tells it at bedtime.
Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, Judi Barrett
19. Three hungry soldiers. A village that hid its food. A pot that starts with stones.
Stone Soup, Marcia Brown
20. A little black fish in a school of red ones. Swimming as one big fish. He’s the eye.
Swimmy, Leo Lionni
16. Finish the nursery rhyme
Fifteen first lines of old Mother Goose rhymes. Guests write the line that comes next.
- Players: everyone, alone.
- Time: about 5 minutes.
- You’ll need: a printed card with the 15 first lines below (everything before the “…”), a blank under each, and pens.
- How: read the key aloud at the end. Close enough counts: these rhymes change a little from book to book.
- Variant: play it aloud in two teams, one line each, back and forth.
- Winner: the most lines finished.
The 15 rhymes, with the next line
Tap a rhyme to see the next line.
1. Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall, …
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.
2. Jack and Jill went up the hill, …
To fetch a pail of water.
3. Little Miss Muffet sat on a tuffet, …
Eating of curds and whey.
4. Hey, diddle, diddle! The cat and the fiddle, …
The cow jumped over the moon.
5. Hickory, dickory, dock! …
The mouse ran up the clock.
6. Baa, baa, black sheep, …
Have you any wool?
7. Little Bo-Peep has lost her sheep, …
And can’t tell where to find them.
8. Little Boy Blue, come, blow your horn! …
The sheep’s in the meadow, the cow’s in the corn.
9. Jack be nimble, Jack be quick, …
Jack jump over the candlestick.
10. Little Jack Horner sat in the corner, …
Eating of Christmas pie.
11. Old King Cole was a merry old soul, …
And a merry old soul was he.
12. This little pig went to market; …
This little pig stayed at home.
13. Pease porridge hot, pease porridge cold, …
Pease porridge in the pot, nine days old.
14. Sing a song of sixpence, …
A pocket full of rye.
15. Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers; …
A peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked.
The lines come from The Real Mother Goose, published in 1916 and free to read on Project Gutenberg.
17. Match the author to the book
Ten titles in one column, ten authors scrambled in the other. Guests draw a line from each book to its author.
- Players: everyone, alone or in pairs.
- Time: about 5 minutes.
- You’ll need: a printed card with the 10 titles below and, beside them, the authors in this order: Jane Yolen, Eric Hill, Ludwig Bemelmans, Peggy Rathmann, Munro Leaf, Ezra Jack Keats, Beatrix Potter, Don Freeman, Eric Carle, Robert McCloskey. Guests draw a line from each book to its author.
- How: one line per book. Read the key when everyone is done. Play it before the storybook clues: that game’s key names the same authors.
- Variant: play in pairs, against a one-minute timer.
- Winner: the most right matches.
The 10 pairs
Tap a title to see its author.
The Very Hungry Caterpillar
Eric Carle
Good Night, Gorilla
Peggy Rathmann
The Snowy Day
Ezra Jack Keats
Where’s Spot?
Eric Hill
Corduroy
Don Freeman
Make Way for Ducklings
Robert McCloskey
The Story of Ferdinand
Munro Leaf
The Tale of Peter Rabbit
Beatrix Potter
Madeline
Ludwig Bemelmans
Owl Moon
Jane Yolen
a minute to guess
18. How many bookworms are in the jar?
A jar of gummy worms and a slip for everyone’s guess. The closest guess takes the worms home.
- Players: everyone, as they arrive.
- Time: a minute to guess; the answer comes near the end.
- You’ll need: Hobby Lobby’s 16-ounce mason jar ($3.29), filled from a 27-ounce bag of Albanese mini gummi worms ($7.99 at Hy-Vee), slips, a pen, an envelope and a kitchen scale.
- How: one guess each, with a name on the slip.
- Variant: closest without going over.
- Winner: the closest guess. Tie? They share the jar.
Count without counting
19. Storybook bingo during the gifts
A bingo card guests fill with the children’s books they think the family will unwrap. Every book that comes out crosses off a square.
- Players: everyone, while the gifts and books are opened.
- Time: as long as the gifts take; stop at 15 minutes.
- You’ll need: one 4-by-4 grid per guest, printed blank, and pens.
- How: guests write 16 titles in the squares, from the library list below or their own memory, and cross each off as it’s unwrapped.
- Variant: classic gift bingo, with diapers, a swaddle, a bath towel and a bib in the squares.
- Winner: the first full row, column or diagonal; at 15 minutes, the most squares crossed off.
20. A story-time circle for the kids
A blanket in the reading nook and a grown-up who reads two or three board books from the nook’s basket, while the grown-ups play.
- Players: kids 2 and up, with a grown-up for the littlest.
- Time: 10 to 15 minutes.
- You’ll need: a blanket, the nook’s basket of board books and one volunteer reader.
- How: the reader holds the book open toward the circle and lets the kids turn the pages.
- Variant: the kids pick the next book from the basket.
- Winner: no score here: every child who sits for a story picks a bookmark from the favor tray.
Under-3s and small things
Three quiet activities for guests who’d rather not play
A baby alphabet book, a blank guest book and advice cards let guests join in when they like, and the family keeps all three.
Activity supplies
Total: $25.46, at Hobby Lobby. The rest of the cardstock makes the “Books for baby” sign and the cupcake toppers.
26 sheets, three rings
21. A baby alphabet book: each guest makes a letter
One sheet a letter, 26 in all: bound with three rings, it becomes a homemade ABC book for the baby’s shelf.
- How: write one letter, A to Z, at the top of 26 sheets of cardstock. Each guest picks a sheet, writes what the letter is for (“B is for bedtime stories”) and illustrates it.
- For 20 guests: set aside 6 hard letters, like Q, U, V, X, Y and Z, for the hosts; guests pick from the other 20.
- Bind it: punch three holes along one side and close three binder rings through the stack. Ten minutes, after the shower.
22. A blank book as the guest book
- You’ll need: Hobby Lobby’s 8½-by-11-inch hardcover sketchbook, 80 white pages ($9.99), and the fineliners.
- How: write “The first chapter” and the date on the first page. Guests take a page each to sign, write a line or draw.
23. “Notes for the next chapter” advice cards
- Print: four cards to a sheet of cardstock, six sheets for 24 cards, cut the day before.
- How: leave them on each table with a pen. The family reads them later, or tucks one into each book.
“Notes for the next chapter. My best advice: ____________. A book I hope you’ll read together: ____________. With love, ____________.”
More ideas with no winner and no pressure are in our guide to things to do at a baby shower besides games.
Book baby shower food for 20 guests
A book shower menu for 20 is tea sandwiches, deviled eggs, fruit, warm meatballs and a small soup, muffins, popcorn and a cookie bar, each named after a classic picture book.
The soup, the muffins and the eggs are cooked the day before; the rest is quick work the morning of.
Book menu for 20 guests
- 48 bread-and-jam tea sandwich triangles, 2 or 3 a guest
- 36 green deviled egg halves
- 20 caterpillar fruit skewers, plus a cut-up plate for kids
- 56 meatballs, 2 or 3 a guest
- 20 small cups of stone soup, half a cup each
- 36 mini blueberry muffins
- A popcorn bar: white cheddar popcorn and kettle corn
- 48 chocolate chip cookies and a gallon of milk
- Two big bottles of lemonade, 24 bottles of water and 40 pounds of ice
Each dish is a wink at a book, named in parentheses. You’ll need two slow cookers, one for the meatballs and one for the soup, or keep the soup on the stove.
Feeding more than 20, or serving brunch? Our guide to how much food a baby shower needs scales it by guest count and time of day.
24. Bread and jam tea sandwiches, for Frances
Strawberry jam on soft white bread, crusts off, cut into small triangles (Bread and Jam for Frances, Russell Hoban).
- Buy: two 20-ounce loaves of Hy-Vee white sandwich bread ($2.69 each) and an 18-ounce jar of Smucker’s seedless strawberry jam ($4.99).
- Make 48: butter 24 slices thinly, so the jam doesn’t soak in, and make 12 sandwiches. Cut off the crusts, then cut each into four triangles.
- When: the morning of. Keep them covered in the fridge until guests arrive.
25. Green deviled eggs, cooked through
Deviled eggs turned pale green by avocado in the filling (Green Eggs and Ham, Dr. Seuss).
- Buy: an 18-count carton of Hy-Vee large eggs ($2.47), two avocados (99 cents each) and a lemon (99 cents). Mayonnaise comes from the pantry.
- The recipe: Pillsbury’s avocado deviled eggs, made one and a half times. Halve 18 hard-cooked eggs and mash the yolks of 9 with 1½ avocados. Stir in ½ cup of mayonnaise, 1 tablespoon of lemon juice and a generous ¼ teaspoon each of salt and pepper.
- Make 36: pipe or spoon the filling into the 36 whites, heaping it slightly. Save the other 9 yolks for another dish.
- When: cook and peel the eggs the day before. Fill them the morning of, so the avocado stays green, and keep them covered in the fridge.
Cooked through, yolk and white
26. Hungry caterpillar fruit skewers
Five green grapes for the body and a strawberry for the head, on a short skewer (The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Eric Carle).
- Buy: a bag of green seedless grapes, about 2⅓ pounds ($3.99 a pound, $9.38 the bag), a pound of strawberries ($5.99) and 100 Good Cook skewers ($2.99), all at Hy-Vee.
- Make 20: thread a strawberry, point up, then five grapes on each skewer, cut to about 6 inches with kitchen shears.
- For the kids: a separate plate of grapes cut in quarters and chopped strawberries, with no skewers.
- When: wash the fruit the day before; thread the skewers the morning of and keep them in the fridge.
27. Slow-cooker meatballs, for a cloudy day
Meatballs in marinara, kept warm, with toothpicks on the side (Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, Judi Barrett).
- Buy: two 1½-pound bags of Johnsonville homestyle meatballs, 28 to a bag ($8.99 each), two 23-ounce jars of Hy-Vee marinara ($1.99 each) and 250 Hy-Vee toothpicks ($2.49).
- How many: 56 meatballs, 2 or 3 a guest.
- Make: the morning of, heat them in the sauce on the stove to 165°F, or as the bag directs, then keep them at 140°F or warmer in a slow cooker.
28. Stone soup in small cups
A simple vegetable soup in small cups, half a cup each, with a clean, smooth stone set beside the pot, never in it (Stone Soup, Marcia Brown).
- Buy: two 32-ounce cartons of Swanson vegetable broth ($2.52 each), a pound of baby carrots ($1.68), two russet potatoes (about $1.19 each), a yellow onion ($1.49) and a can of Hunt’s diced tomatoes ($1.48).
- Make the day before: soften the chopped onion in a little oil, add the broth, the tomatoes, the sliced carrots and the diced potatoes, and simmer until the potatoes are tender, about 25 minutes. About 12 cups. Cool it and refrigerate it.
- The morning of: bring it back to a boil, then keep it warm in the second slow cooker or on low on the stove.
bake them the day before
29. Blueberry muffins, for Sal
Mini blueberry muffins in a basket (Blueberries for Sal, Robert McCloskey).
- Buy: one 16.9-ounce box of Betty Crocker wild blueberry muffin mix ($3.69). The 2 eggs come from the dozen on the dessert list, and the milk from the cookie bar’s gallon.
- Make 36 the day before: Betty Crocker’s mini-muffin recipe. Stir the mix with ¾ cup of milk, ¼ cup of oil and 2 eggs, fold in the rinsed blueberries, fill 36 greased mini-muffin cups two-thirds full and bake at 425°F for 11 to 14 minutes.
30. A snowy-day popcorn bar
Two big bowls of popcorn, white cheddar for the snow and kettle corn, with a scoop and paper cups (The Snowy Day, Ezra Jack Keats).
- Buy: a 9¾-ounce bag of Smartfood white cheddar popcorn ($5.94) and a 3-pack of Hy-Vee kettle corn microwave popcorn ($2.69).
- When: pop the kettle corn an hour before guests arrive and fill both bowls.
31. A cookie-and-milk bar, for the mouse
Warm chocolate chip cookies, small cups of milk and a jar of straws, because the mouse always asks for one (If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, Laura Numeroff).
- Buy: two 24-count packages of Pillsbury chocolate chip cookie dough ($4.49 each), a gallon of Hy-Vee vitamin D milk ($5.49) and 50 Good Cook paper straws ($3.69).
- How many: 48 cookies, 2 a guest, and about 15 small cups of milk.
- When: bake them the morning of, as the package directs. Keep the milk in the fridge and pour it as guests come.
The drinks
- Buy: two 76-ounce bottles of Simply Lemonade ($4.99 each), a 24-pack of Hy-Vee water ($3.99) and two 20-pound bags of ice ($5.99 each).
- How many: plan 1 to 2 eight-ounce drinks a guest an hour, the count Cooking For Crowds For Dummies gives, and 1 to 2 pounds of ice a guest, Reddy Ice says. With the milk, that’s about 58 drinks for two hours, and 40 pounds of ice.
Food shopping list for 20 guests, at Hy-Vee
Total: $127.12, about $6.36 a guest, before tax. Hy-Vee’s online prices vary by store.
Not counted: pantry staples, like butter, oil and mayonnaise, and cups, plates and napkins.
Watch the clock on perishables
Label these before the food goes out
- The tea sandwiches: wheat (bread) and milk (butter)
- The deviled eggs: egg
- The meatballs: the “Contains” line from the bag
- The muffins: egg and milk, and the mix’s “Contains” line
- The white cheddar popcorn: milk
- The cookies: the “Contains” line from the dough’s package
- Anything else store-bought, like the bread, the broth and the marinara: the “Contains” line from its package, and any “may contain” line
Cooking for a guest who is pregnant, or for allergies and other diets? Our menu guide lists the foods to skip and how to label a buffet.
Toddlers at the party
The make-ahead plan
- A week beforeFind the books at a sale or a thrift store, make the garland and the paper flowers, and order the poster.
- The day beforeShop, hard-cook and peel the eggs, make the soup, bake the mini muffins, the cake and the cupcakes, wash the fruit, and make the centerpieces. Print the games and the advice cards.
- The morning ofMake the tea sandwiches and the egg filling, thread the skewers, frost the cake and the cupcakes, bake the cookies, heat the meatballs to 165°F, and bring the soup back to a boil.
- During the showerBring the food out in small platters, swap them rather than topping them up, and throw away any perishable dish that has sat at room temperature for 2 hours (1 hour above 90°F); dishes kept at 140°F or warmer can stay out.
The rest of the to-do list, from the invitations to the thank-you notes, is in our baby shower checklist, and our baby shower agenda puts the games, the food and the gifts on a two-hour clock.
A book cake and bookmark cupcakes
A sheet cake frosted cream, with fork lines on three sides for the pages, reads as a closed book, with no fondant. Bookmark cupcakes beside it give everyone a choice.
32. A book cake: a sheet cake frosted with page lines
A one-layer vanilla cake in a 13-by-9 pan, frosted cream, with fine lines drawn along three sides for the pages and a title piped on top.
- Buy: a box of Betty Crocker Super Moist vanilla cake mix ($1.77), plus the water, oil and 3 eggs the box asks for, two tubs of Betty Crocker vanilla frosting ($2.18 each) and a 7-ounce tube of Wilton chocolate decorating icing with four tips ($4.99).
- Bake: at 350°F for 24 to 29 minutes, as the box directs for a 13-by-9 pan, the day before. Cool it completely and wrap it.
- Decorate: turn it out onto a board and frost the top and sides. Drag a fork lengthwise along both short sides and one long side, in close, fine lines, for the pages. Leave the other long side smooth: that’s the spine.
- The title: pipe “A New Chapter” on top with the chocolate icing, and a thin border an inch in from the edge, like a cover.
- How many: Wilton counts 36 party slices, about 1½ by 2 inches, for a 13-by-9 sheet two layers high. One layer, cut 3 by 6 into 18 pieces, serves 20 with the cupcakes beside it.
Buying it instead? Ask a grocery bakery for a plain white sheet cake with no writing, and add the fork lines and the title yourself.
Prices vary by store, so ask when you order.
24 cupcakes, under $7
33. Cupcakes with paper bookmark toppers
24 cupcakes, 24 bookmarks: a strip of cardstock on a toothpick, with a book title or “Read me” on each.
- Buy: a second box of the vanilla mix ($1.77), a third tub of frosting ($2.18) and 75 Wilton baking cups ($2.99).
- Bake 24: at 350°F for 14 to 19 minutes, the box’s cupcake directions, the day before.
- The toppers: cut 24 strips of cardstock, 1 by 3 inches, write a book title or “Read me” on each, and tape a toothpick to the back. Push one into each frosted cupcake, the morning of.
Dessert shopping list for 20 guests
Total: $20.05, before tax, at Hy-Vee.
Not counted: oil from your pantry, and the cardstock and toothpicks from the other lists.
Label the cake and cupcakes: wheat and egg, and the frosting’s “Contains” line.
Six book baby shower favors, with what each costs
Six book favors, from a bookmark to a secondhand picture book for each child, each with its cost and a tag line to copy.
Choose one, or two if one is the children’s book. Every count makes 22 for 20 guests, so a late yes still gets one, except the picture books, one per child; keep the tray by the door, above toddler height.
Label anything edible
about 8 cents each
34. Bookmarks with a tag line
- Cost: about 8 cents a guest: Hobby Lobby’s 50 white paper bookmarks, 2 by 6 inches, are $1.79. Punch a hole at the top and knot a short tassel of jute twine from the garland’s spool.
- Prep: letter the line in navy, a minute each, any day before.
- Tag: “Thanks for being part of our story.”
35. Gummy “bookworms” in a bag
- Cost: about 54 cents a bag: a second 27-ounce bag of Albanese mini gummi worms ($7.99), about 1¼ ounces a bag, Hobby Lobby’s 50 cello bags, 4 by 9 inches ($1.99), and two packs of 12 kraft tags (99 cents each). For 22: $11.96.
- Prep: a minute a bag, any day before.
- Tag: “From one bookworm to another.”
- Good to know: the worms are made with gelatin, worth a word on the tag for vegetarian guests. Gummy candies are on the CDC’s choking list for young children, so these are for the grown-ups.
36. A mini notebook: “Write your own story”
- Cost: about 64 cents: 24 kraft notebooks, 4 by 4 inches, with 48 blank pages each, are $13.99 on Amazon, enough for 22 with two spare.
- Prep: write the line on each cover with a fineliner, a minute each.
- Tag: “Write your own story.”
37. Tea bags: “Steep yourself in a good story”
Two green tea bags a guest, in a cello bag with a kraft tag: a cup for the next chapter.
- Cost: about 70 cents a favor. For 22: a 40-count and a 20-count box of Bigelow’s classic green tea ($6.99 and $4.49 at Hy-Vee), the cello bags and two packs of tags, $15.45.
- Prep: a minute a bag, any day before.
- Tag: “Steep yourself in a good story.”
38. A hot cocoa kit for reading weather
One envelope of cocoa a guest, marshmallows included, in a cello bag with a kraft tag.
- Cost: about 66 cents: a Swiss Miss envelope with marshmallows (8 for $3.49 at Hy-Vee), a cello bag and a kraft tag. For 22: three boxes, a pack of bags and two packs of tags, $14.44.
- Prep: a minute a bag, any day before.
- Tag: “For a cozy chapter or two.” Under it, copy the box’s “Contains: milk.”
- Good to know: marshmallows are on the CDC’s choking list for young children, so these are for the grown-ups.
39. A secondhand picture book for each child guest
- Cost: about 50 cents a child: children’s hardcovers were 50 cents at the Dexter Friends sale, and paperbacks 25 cents. For five children, $2.50.
- Prep: wipe the covers and write each child’s name on a bookplate inside.
- Tag: “A story for you, too.”
Start the baby’s first library: 20 books by age
A first library of 20 is ten board books for babies and toddlers and ten picture books for preschoolers and up, all in print. A shared list keeps two guests from bringing the same one.
Why books at all? The American Academy of Pediatrics asks pediatricians to encourage shared reading beginning at birth and continuing at least through kindergarten, in its 2024 policy statement on literacy promotion.
20 books, by age
40. A starter library: 20 books by age
Ten board books and ten picture books, each in print, with the publisher’s list price and age range. Copy the list into a shared note (below), so guests can pick one.
10 board books, for babies and toddlers
- The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Eric Carle: $10.99, ages 0 to 3
- Good Night, Gorilla, Peggy Rathmann: $9.99, ages 1 to 3
- The Snowy Day, Ezra Jack Keats: $8.99, ages 0 to 2
- Where’s Spot?, Eric Hill: $7.99, ages 1 to 3
- Corduroy, Don Freeman: $9.99, ages 1 to 3
- Llama Llama Red Pajama, Anna Dewdney: $8.99, ages 1 to 3
- Each Peach Pear Plum, Allan Ahlberg and Janet Ahlberg: $9.99, ages 0 to 3
- The Very Busy Spider, Eric Carle: $11.99, ages 0 to 3
- Dr. Seuss’s ABC, Dr. Seuss: $5.99, ages 0 to 3
- Mr. Brown Can Moo! Can You?, Dr. Seuss: $5.99, ages 0 to 3
10 picture books, for preschoolers and up
- Make Way for Ducklings, Robert McCloskey: $20.99, ages 3 to 7
- Blueberries for Sal, Robert McCloskey: $20.99, ages 3 to 7
- The Story of Ferdinand, Munro Leaf and Robert Lawson: $18.99, ages 3 to 5
- The Tale of Peter Rabbit, Beatrix Potter: $9.99, ages 3 to 7
- Green Eggs and Ham, Dr. Seuss: $9.99, ages 3 to 7
- Madeline, Ludwig Bemelmans: $19.99, ages 3 to 7
- Dragons Love Tacos, Adam Rubin and Daniel Salmieri: $18.99, ages 3 to 7
- The Little Engine That Could, Watty Piper: $10.99, ages 3 to 7
- Owl Moon, Jane Yolen and John Schoenherr: $18.99, ages 3 to 7
- Swimmy, Leo Lionni: $18.99, ages 3 to 7
Prices and ages are Penguin Random House’s, read on October 28, 2026: board books in their board book editions, picture books in hardcover. Any edition, new or secondhand, counts.
41. A shared list to avoid duplicates, and three uses for the ones that slip through
- A shared list: paste the 20 titles above into a note or a spreadsheet anyone with the link can edit, and send the link with the invitation. Guests write their name beside the book they’re bringing.
- A gift receipt: ask guests who buy new to tuck the receipt inside the cover, so a second copy can be swapped at the store.
- A second home: a duplicate makes a copy for the grandparents’ house, the car or the daycare shelf.
- Pass it on: a spare secondhand copy goes back to the Friends of the Library, or to a little free library down the street.
Book themed baby shower invitation wording, and one to open like a storybook
A book shower invitation needs the names, the date and time, the place, the RSVP date and the book request. Send it four to six weeks ahead, so guests have time to find a book.
42. Book themed invitation wording, and one to open like a storybook
Swap your details into the brackets. More, including a storybook line, are in our baby shower invitation wording by theme.
“A new chapter begins. Please join us for a baby shower honoring [names], [day, date] at [time], at [place]. Instead of a card, please bring a favorite children’s book with a note inside. Kindly reply by [RSVP date].”
“Once upon a time, a brand-new story was about to begin… Join us for a baby shower for [names], [day, date] at [time], at [place]. Bring a book instead of a card, and RSVP by [RSVP date].”
“Bookworms of all ages, you’re invited: a coed baby shower for [names], [day, date] at [time], at [place]. Bring a book for the baby’s first library, and reply by [RSVP date] with how many are coming.”
Rather send a link than a card? Woodland Friends, our woodland baby shower website, opens like a pop-up storybook onto a birch forest, and guests can skip the animation or replay it.
A fawn, a fox and a hedgehog keep the date, the place and the RSVP date behind their doors, and guests reply at the Forest Post, for 1 to 12 people at a time.
The book request goes in your message: one tap on “Bring a book” in the builder adds “Instead of a card, please bring your favorite children’s book.”
Build and preview it free with your own details, then publish for $29, once, with no subscription and no ads. See the Woodland Friends example, filled in with fictional details.
Planning the rest of the forest too? Our woodland baby shower ideas pair the books with moss, foxes and a tree stump cake.
Questions
Is it rude to ask for a book instead of a card?
Does the book replace the gift?
What book should I bring to a baby shower?
Is a book themed baby shower gender-neutral?
How much does a book themed baby shower cost for 20 guests?
When should book baby shower invitations go out?
