The central character, a knitted doll named Emily, is available for sale in the shop, although the author keeps one Emily doll on her desk as a lucky mascot, just as the shop keeper in her book decides to do.
Other characters featured in the book, including a polar bear, monkey, and mammoth are also toys which Ashleigh sells to customers in her store, and she says that she is constantly inspired when surrounded by toys all day long.
As a Mother herself, Ashleigh Millward chose to start writing timeless stories for children to combat what she describes as a "constant trickle of empty stories" aimed at children, which she says "lack any enchantment, or any of the wonder that makes a children's book so delightful and memorable." Ashleigh explains "There has developed such an emphasis on keeping words to an absolute minimum in books for pre school children, and letting the illustrations do the talking. I love a beautiful illustration as much as the next person, but where have the STORIES gone?"
Ashleigh's book seems to capture a bygone era, without sounding old fashioned, and sees a revival of the classic bedtime story.