One-of-a-kind Chinese books where your child is the hero.
Pick a theme and a lesson, and Junebook writes and paints a brand-new picture book in about a minute, at your child's HSK level and read aloud. Add a few photos to put your child, Mama and Baba in the story, or cast it from our friendly characters.
A new story takes about a minute to write.
小美做了六个包子。
Xiaomei made six baozi.
How it works
From your family, or ours, to a book they'll ask for every night.
Choose your characters
Upload up to three photos each of your child, Mama, Baba, grandparents or pets. Or skip the photos and pick from our cast.
Get the drawing just right
Junebook draws everyone from your photos in its watercolour style. Not quite them? Ask for a change, like “longer hair” or “add his glasses”, and it redraws.
Star in a new story
Pick a theme and a lesson. Every character looks the same on every page and in every book, read aloud in Chinese at your child's level.
Meet our family
Junebook started with one little reader.
As a Chinese-American dad in a multicultural family, I struggled to find ways to teach Mandarin to my daughter, June, that didn't feel like a chore. What started out as fun made-up stories starring our dog and cat (Roscoe and Lumi) became the Junebook. And to be honest, my own Chinese has gotten a lot better too!
Meet the cast
No photos? Our friendly cast is ready to step in.
Don't want to make your own characters? Pick any of ours. Each one has a personality of their own, and looks the same in every book.
骏怡Jùnyí · June
Girl, 4–5Cheerful and curious. Loves exploring with her friends Lumi and Roscoe, and wants to do everything herself.
小美Xiǎo Měi
Girl, 5Creative and always drawing, and slowly learning that things don't have to be perfect.
小明Xiǎo Míng
Boy, 6Asks “why?” about everything, then forgets what he was doing.
圆圆Yuányuan
Panda cubGentle, thoughtful and a little shy. Never without that yellow scarf.
跳跳Tiàotiào
RabbitBouncy and funny, always rushing ahead in bright red sneakers.
龙龙Lónglong
Baby dragonBrave and kind, and a little clumsy when he gets excited.
露米Lùmǐ
Persian catElegant, curious, and happy to disagree. Will not, under any circumstances, get messy.
肉丝狗Ròusīgǒu
CorgiLoyal, cheerful and shy. Can't resist anything shiny, or a ball to chase.
Plus Mama, Baba, Nainai, Yeye and Wáng lǎoshī for the grown-up parts. Mix them with your own characters, up to five in a book.
Dream one up
A theme they love, a lesson you care about.
Try it: pick one of each. You can also type your own.
Tonight's story
A story about food and cooking that's all about working together.
8 pages at your child's HSK level, starring the characters you choose.
Written at their level
The same story, as they grow.
Junebook checks every word against the HSK list for your child's level. Anything harder is kept to a few new words, underlined and listed at the end of the book.
- HSK 1Ages 3–5
小猫很高兴。
The kitten is very happy.
- HSK 2Ages 5–7
小猫找到了新朋友。
The kitten found a new friend.
- HSK 3Ages 7–9
虽然下雨了，小猫还是去找朋友。
Even though it rained, the kitten still went to find its friend.
Levels go up to HSK 6. Examples shown for illustration.
For grown-ups
You're the editor. They're the reader.
Review before it's painted
Read the story, edit any line, and check the new words. Every change is proofread and kept in the page's history.
Your photos don't stay
Photos are used only to draw the character. They're deleted as soon as you approve the drawing, and within 24 hours either way. Only the drawing is kept.
Print it or send it
Print a book for the shelf, or share a link so grandparents can read along.
A shelf for each child
Up to six readers, each with their own level, age and pinyin settings.
Read it your way
Curl up with a tablet, or keep it on the shelf.
Every book lives in your library to read on screen, and every book can be printed or saved as a PDF.
On a tablet or phone
Made for little hands. Pages turn with a tap, a natural voice reads each one aloud, and any word opens its pinyin and meaning.
- Read-aloud
- Tap a word
- Pinyin and English on or off
- Portrait or landscape
Printed, or saved as a PDF
Every book has a print view: one story page per sheet, picture above the text. Print it for the bookshelf, or save it as a PDF to keep or send to family.
- One page per sheet
- Pinyin and English optional
- Works offline once saved
Start tonight's story.
Set up a reader, pick a theme, and your first book is ready in about a minute.