Question 1

Who creates these books?

Accepted Answer

Pine Blossom Books is a one-woman project! I'm Katie, a mom with roots in Hong Kong, now raising a trilingual daughter in France. I began writing children’s stories in 2019, when years of life abroad, travel, nature, and cross-cultural reflection started to take shape on the page.

What began as quiet scribbles turned into real books after my daughter was born—she gave me the push I needed. Today, I create bilingual Cantonese picture books to help pass on this beautiful language, so children of Cantonese heritage can explore the world and themselves while staying rooted in where they come from.

Question 2

Will you offer Mandarin editions of your books?

Accepted Answer

Not at this time. There are a few reasons:
1. Mandarin resources are already abundant and standardized, while Cantonese is much less represented — that’s where I feel I can make the most impact.
2. I prefer to create in languages that feel personal and emotional to me. While I do speak Mandarin (and grew up listening to plenty of Mando-pop!), it’s more of a working language than one I deeply identify with.
My books are designed especially for families raising children with Cantonese heritage, often outside of Hong Kong. For now, I offer Cantonese-English bilingual editions with Jyutping support, and a Cantonese-French version is on its way!

I've shared how I came to this decision about writing in spoken Cantonese — 粵文 (jyut6 man4), check it out! 😀

https://www.instagram.com/p/C9IF4ZYslh0/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MWlzdGd6NWN0ODFyYQ==

Question 3

Do you offer digital editions?

Accepted Answer

Yes. The books are available in Kindle format on Amazon, and I also offer free printable activities designed for home or classroom use.

Question 4

What is Jyutping?

Accepted Answer

Jyutping is a romanization system for Cantonese, developed by the Linguistic Society of Hong Kong. It uses the Latin alphabet to show how Cantonese words are pronounced — including consonants, vowels, and tone numbers.

At Pine Blossom Books, I use Jyutping in my books and printables to help non-native speakers, families abroad, and learners of all ages pronounce Cantonese more accurately — even if they can’t yet read Chinese characters.

Here’s an example:
The word for “thank you” in Cantonese is written as 多謝 in characters, and as do1 ze6 in Jyutping — showing both sounds and tones.
It’s a learning tool, not a replacement for Cantonese, and it helps bridge the gap for families passing on the language across generations.

Question 5

How can I support your work?

Accepted Answer

Thank you for asking! ❤️You can:
 • Buy directly from this shop
 • Share the books with friends, teachers, or schools
 • Leave a review or follow me (https://www.instagram.com/pineblossombooks/)

Any support is monumental for independent authors like me. 
多謝曬 do1 ze6 saai3!

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*FREE SHIPPING* domestic France for purchase over 20 € | international EU & UK for purchase over 25 €

Shipping & Returns / FAQ

Follow me!

FREE SHIPPING domestic France for purchase over 20 € | international EU & UK for purchase over 25 €