A friend and I conspired on one of these as a birthday gift just last year. You can actually buy something like this in a store, but why spend fifteen or twenty bucks if you don't have to? The idea is very simple. You're making an autobiography, or a biography on your friend's behalf. Get a nice blank journal, gather up any photographs or stickers you might want to include, and set to work.

On the first page include basic information: name, age, location, hair colour, eye colour, current job. On the next page, write about family: how many siblings, how many cousins, who's the family favourite etc etc. As you work through the book, get a little more personal. Include a page about dreams and aspirations, about first loves and worst break-ups, about the person you or your friend truly hate. Write about political views, religious perspectives, regrets and most embarassing moments. If you have a question to which you don't know the answer, leave it blank and fill it in later.

This gift is about introspection. You experience it yourself when making the book, and share it when you give it to a friend. Preferably over a steaming cup of international coffee.