With You in Spirit: A Qing Ming Story

A little girl and her family come together to honor her late grandfather on Qing Ming or Tomb-Sweeping Day in this heartwarming story about celebrating ancestors.

Join a young girl and her family as they prepare for Qing Ming: cooking favorite dishes and gathering everything they need to visit Yeh Yeh’s grave. The girl is worried because her memories of Yeh Yeh are fading and wonders if he is forgetting her too.
As the family sweeps and clears debris from Yeh Yeh’s grave, burn incense and joss paper, the little girl has an offering of her own. She shares about her adventures and accomplishments from the past year, burning a drawing of a bicycle, so that Yeh Yeh can ride like they used to at the park. With every story and offering, she feels closer to her grandfather. When the family gathers for a picnic at the grave, indulging in Yeh Yeh’s favorite foods--it is a tender moment of togetherness.
A heartwarming story about honoring and celebrating those who are gone.

Jenny Liao is a Chinese American author of stories that inspire children to find pride in every part of their identity. Her work has also been featured in the New Yorker and Bon Appétit. Jenny is the author of Everyone Loves Lunchtime But Zia and Everyone Loves Career Day but Zia.

Lenny Wen is an author-illustrator who was born in Indonesia. She loves to draw whimsical, spooky, and nostalgic childhood illustrations with a mixture of storytelling, imagination, and emotion. She is the illustrator of How We Say I love You and Better Together. She lives in Austria. To learn more about Lenny, please visit lennywen.com.