A Flame Burns On
Lighting the Yahrzeit Candle
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- Pedido anticipado
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- Se espera: 26 may 2026
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- $89.00
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- Pedido anticipado
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- $89.00
Descripción editorial
A girl and her mom light a candle to honor the memory of a loved one in this gorgeously illustrated picture book about this special Jewish tradition.
Each year, a girl and her mom light a yahrzeit candle on the anniversary of an uncle’s passing. Even though she was young when he died, her memories of him shine bright and clear: all the times they went camping, read together, and how he was there for every birthday.
The mom and daughter spend the day exchanging their favorite stories, sometimes laughing or shedding a tear, and visiting his plot, his spirit lives on, rekindled in the yahrzeit candle's flame. It’s then that the girl understands the true purpose of her family’s custom: to share, celebrate, and heal.
With luminous art that glows on the page, A Flame Burns On is an unforgettable, poignant story about finding joy and light in the darkness, and an ode to the loved ones that stay in our hearts forever, long after they are gone.
Backmatter includes an author’s note that explains the custom and significance of lighting a yahrzeit candle.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The Jewish memorial candle, "tucked in a glass cup" and lit on the anniversary of a loved one's death, illuminates Ho and Ben Ami's affecting story of a young narrator honoring a beloved uncle. Quietly poetic text explains that the yahrzeit candle "has just enough wax/ and a long enough wick/ to last for one whole day." Impressionistic mixed-media illustrations suffused with light depict sweet recollections of the brown-skinned family (at a campfire, together during a lightning storm, around a birthday cake "lit up with joy") as well as the bittersweet closeness that comes from narrator and mother remembering the uncle together: "Sometimes we cry./ Sometimes we laugh./ Most times, we do both." The setting moves from the warm glow of home to a cemetery where the mother places a stone on the grave site, another Jewish ritual that echoes the candle's promise of remembrance. This gentle meditation shows how connection endures in recalling lost loved ones. Characters are portrayed with various skin tones. Creators' notes ground the story in personal experience. Ages 4–8.
