A bedtime picture book about the little hands that watch a dad work, and grow up wanting to build, fix, and hold the world just like him.
"A bedtime story for the kids whose first superheroes wear work boots."
"I wrote this for my nephews, Easton, Hayden, Aiden, and Liam. That's their dad up on the roof in the rain. That's their Papa, my own dad, down at the furnace. Two family businesses, both in this book now, permanently. The boys are too little to know it yet. But it will get read to them at bedtime, and one day they will find their own dad in the pictures. That is the whole reason this book exists."
Where's Dada working today? When's he coming home? And the little hands already trying to build, fix, and hold the world the way his do.
"The book my son asks for by name."
"The perfect book for a trades family like ours. Not too long or short, easy to follow, bright illustrations, and a truly great story line. Our boys love reading it before bed, and even during the day, imagining what dad is doing away at work."
I wrote the words, then chased them into a song. Same heart as the book. Free to listen, anywhere.
A few hundred likes, comments, and shares in the first days.
Written to be handed down, and built to last thousands of bedtimes.
For the bedtimes that go by too fast.
"So good I bought four to give to friends and family."
The 50 Founding Readers are closed now, their names printed inside the first edition forever. But every reader since keeps joining the growing Reader Wall. Buy the book, and your name goes up with them as an Early Reader.
The first-edition hardcover + the free activity kit
Read it together, three bedtimes in a row. If it hasn't earned a place on your child's shelf, email us for a full refund, and keep the book. No forms, nothing to ship back. The risk is entirely ours.
Ron Smith grew up in his family's HVAC business and has spent the last 15 years beside families who built their companies with their hands. He wrote Hands Like Daddy's for his nephews, Easton, Hayden, Aiden, and Liam, for his brothers-in-law who are those dads now, and for the kid he used to be, waiting on the same truck to come home.
"Two family businesses, both in this book now, permanently. Someday the boys will find their own dad in the pictures. That's the whole reason it exists."
Published by Cordis House, a small imprint building books for the people who hold up the world quietly.
The first edition is shipping now. Order today and you're in the first printing.
Written for roughly ages 2 to 7, and for the grown-ups reading it aloud. A first bedtime book and a keepsake to hand down.
Yes. Sturdy, full-color, printed to survive a thousand bedtimes. The first printing is in hand and shipping now.
The Shelf Guarantee: read it together, and if it doesn't earn a place on your child's shelf, email us for a full refund and keep the book.
Both work, and both help. Amazon is live with a 4.9-star rating, and a review there is the single biggest way to help another family find the book. Ordering here gets you the same first-edition hardcover plus the free activity kit and your name on the Reader Wall, and it supports the book most directly.
The first edition is shipping now. Order your copy and claim your spot on the wall.
Order the hardcover · $24.99 →Not ready to bring it home yet? Grab the free activity kit and follow along.
