Lily's Hong Kong Honey Cake

Author: Erica Lyons and Bonnie Pang

Hardcover

Forced to leave war-torn Vienna for Shanghai and then Hong Kong, a young girl and her family struggle to make ends meet and to keep their Jewish traditions alive in this historical fiction picture book based on a true story.

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9th December 2025

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Pre order release date
9th December 2025

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Hardcover

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Summary

Description

Based on the history of Jewish refugees in Asia and spanning multiple years during World War II, this picture book shows how some creativity, adaptability, and a lot of love can make the new year sweet no matter where you are.

Lily's family ran a pastry shop in Vienna. Every Rosh Hashanah, they baked honey cakes for their customers. But when war comes, they must leave everything behind. They first travel to Shanghai, where they are able to open a new bakery. Each year, Lily learned more about baking. She helped to mix and pour the batter, measure the ingredients, and passed out the wrapped up treats. But each year, there are changes. When the flour runs out, they have to use rice instead. There were fewer customers, and the newspaper wrappings were showing bad news.

Soon, Lily's family has to move again, to Hong Kong. With rations there was even less than usual. There would be no honey cake this year. But Lily had been watching how her parents had made do in the years before, and she had some ideas of her own. Because despite all the changes, everyone deserves to have a sweet new year.

Critic Reviews

"Lily’s Hong Kong Honey Cake is a captivating tale weaving together resilience, community, and the power of tradition. It offers young readers a valuable lesson in Jewish history that should never be forgotten." — Abby Lester, Director of the Global Archives of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC)

"Set amidst the lesser-known history of Jewish refugees’ experiences in Shanghai and Hong Kong during and after the Second World War, Lily’s Hong Kong Honey Cake is a sweet illustration of Jewish tradition, community spirit and human resilience during difficult times, gently inspiring hope and strength. A cozy and heartwarming read." —Fanny Lu, Executive Director of The Hong Kong Heritage Project

About the Author

Erica Lyons is the chair of the Hong Kong Jewish Historical Society, the Hong Kong Delegate to World Jewish Congress, and the founder of Hong Kong’s PJ Library program. Her first picture book, Alone Together on Dan Street, was a National Jewish Book Award finalist. In addition to writing, she has been a speaker for a number of forums that included: TEDx Victoria Harbour (Hong Kong), the SEFER International Conference for Judaic Studies (Moscow), Limmud China (Shanghai), and the 16th World Jewish Congress Plenary. Along with her family, she has called Hong Kong home for nearly two decades. Bonnie Pang has a Bachelor's degree in Geography and Resource Management from The Chinese University of Hong Kong, and a Master's degree in Illustration from The Academy of Art University. As an illustrator, she has worked on concept art for animation studios, children's book illustration, commercial illustration and public art projects. She lives in Hong Kong.