Description: A children's story that quietly portrays the pain and sorrow of a family left behind after a father's death. Told in an unhurried, gentle style, the slow process of healing touches the heart. It reminds us that everyone experiences the loss of someone they love, and that death is not the opposite of life, but simply a part of it. After fighting liver cancer for three years, Dad passed away suddenly last year. With his absence, Minseo and her mom spend their days in sorrow. As time passes, Minseo's grief slowly eases, but her mother's sadness shows no sign of improving. Watching all of this unfold, the grandmother from the 7th floor works together with Minseo to find a way to help heal Mom's wounded heart. Little by little, Mom begins to get better — she no longer goes out to the empty lot at dawn, and she no longer leaves wet laundry hanging on the balcony. But sometimes, when she irons Dad's shirts, her eyes still well up with tears, and she occasionally wears his shirt out to the garden. Seeing her mother looking a little more at peace, Minseo bids farewell to her father in heaven. Shadow Play · The Empty Lot at Dawn · Dad's Shirt · The Grandmother from the 7th Floor · The Apartment Garden Plot · Singing Children's Songs · A Picnic · Two Straw Hats · An Old Photograph · Beneath the Taro Leaves — Author's Note "Minseo. Imagine that someone precious to you is no longer by your side one day. No — you already know this, don't you? A precious person goes on living for a long time within those left behind. Just like your dad. Your mom washes his clothes by hand and hangs them on the windowsill where the breeze blows through, so she can meet him in her heart. Watching his shirt sway in the wind, she thinks of your dad — she says it feels as if he's still alive and moving. She hangs it up without wringing it out, on purpose, so she can look at it longer. When she sees the wrinkled, dried-out shirt, she says it makes her heart ache, remembering your dad when he was sick. What are we going to do with her... tsk, tsk... what a soft heart she has." — p.37 — Written by Park Mi-ra Recent works: Kitaengdeung Trio, Lauring-ya of Sigeumsaegeum Village, Auntie Lee Chan-sil's Furniture Hunt, and more (5 titles total) About the author: She spent her childhood at an orchard in Cheonan, Chungcheongnam-do. She says she played 'as hard as she possibly could' as a child — sitting on a lightning-struck tree to see-saw, catching and rolling leeches, playing hide-and-seek in a graveyard. She says those memories became the strength behind her storytelling. After majoring in creative writing in college, she wrote several planned children's book series, including Mahatma Gandhi. Illustrated by Choi Jeong-in Recent works: 126 titles total About the illustrator: Born in Seoul, she studied printmaking at Hongik University. Under her hand, the stories within children's books come vividly to life. Her delicate linework combined with warm color tones adds to the joy of reading. Her illustrated books include Tears of the Amazon for Children, My Friend Drita, The Eraser Game Rules, Emperor Penguins Pengi and Somi, Band-Aid Friendship, and My Name Is Dokdo.