The Language of Flowers: A Novel

In the Language of Flowers, Diffenbaugh weaves a beautiful story about a young girl and her love of flowers. The story begins with Victoria's 18th birthday and her emancipation from the foster system. The other girls in her transitional home is relieved to watch her go. The audience is perplexed by her anger and her past is a giant mystery. Diffenbaugh parallels Victoria's current story to that of her ten year old self living with a foster parent, Elizabeth. Even as a ten year old, she is filled with rage but beneath that was a broken fragile little girl searching for warmth and love.Now eighteen and emancipated, she is shoved into the real world with no real skills and no motivation to make something out of herself. She remains broken, but prides herself on her detached attitude. The only thing she wants it to be left alone with her flower and her tattered book of the Language of Flowers from Elizabeth. However, even with the emancipation, she cannot sustain herself and must find a job. Stumbling upon a part time job working for a florist, she begins to discover her own gifts, giving her a second chance at a better life.This is a novel about growth, and the chance at healing. It is about optimism and perseverance. There is only one word I can use to describe this novel: heartwrenching. In Victoria's journey of self-discovery and realization, I felt as if I were dragged along the journey. When she sat alone and slept outside, I felt her fear and desperation. My heart broke along with Victoria's, and healed when she found happiness. After reading her experiences, it made me reflect on my own life. It made me question my ability to persevere and strength, appreciating the conditions the human heart is able to endure, and putting my own problems in perspective. I felt myself growing with Victoria, opening my mind to the different experiences of different people. Even though the ending seemed a bit predictable, I believe it was for the best. The story is about her evolving into a different person and redeeming all the wrongs she had committed to those around her. By slowly inching back into her broken life, she is realistic about her growth, which I believe is what set the story apart from any other generic "happy ending novel."The story line is simple, but the writing and the incorporation of the meanings of flowers was intricately done. The story will not disappoint, and I recommend it to all and guarantee it will show you a perspective of humanity that you may have overlooked and not realized.

The Language of Flowers is an absorbing and redemptive novel about isolation, anger, flowers, and love. The novel traces the life of Victoria Jones who is abandoned by her parents and placed in numerous foster homes. Victoria develops an intense anti-social attitude to all she comes in contact with including those who are genuine in their desire to help and even be affectionate towards her. The Language of Flowers provide the one thing that she can believe in. ‘I had been loyal to nothing except the language of flowers. If I started lying about it, there would be nothing left in my life that was beautiful or true.’ The Victorian language of flowers was used to express emotions: honeysuckle for devotion, azaleas for passion, and red roses for love. Victoria uses the language to express negative emotions like grief, mistrust and solitude. The novel starts slowly but builds to a shattering climax in the third part. Mystery and suspense are highly developed and it is only at the very end that all is revealed.The author gives us deep insight into Victoria and why she and many others develop into anti social beings. The reader can feel the intensity of the rage, the hatred and when it comes, the love, that Victoria feels. Victoria at times seems becoming a female version of Kevin (from “We need to talk about Kevin ”).Vanessa Diffenbaugh’s descriptions of flowers and food in particular are sensual and enjoyable. The novel is set in San Francisco, a beautiful city full of flowers in the summertime, an ideal setting for a book involving flowers. The chapter system kept me on edge. The chapters alternate between the younger 9-year-old Victoria and the 18-year-old Victoria. Parallel events occur in two time frames, so that fiascos, hospitalizations and moments of dramatic ripening in one time frame coincides with a similar event in the other.At times the author went too far with flowers. Flowers might be symbols but could a wild bouquet of mums and periwinkles cause someone to have true and tender recollections? The book is excessively female orientated. A woman writes it about a young woman who has a female child and searches for someone to be her mother. Men are few and not generally developed as characters. Victoria has a child with the one significant male character Grant. He is the big, strong, a great cook with somewhat motherly nature. A child is the product of a union between a man and a woman so it is morally wrong for a pregnant woman to take a child away without even consulting the father. Especially a father like Grant.

This was a gripping and educational story. It was difficult to put it down as the characters were multi-dimensional and it was intriguing how each person (primarily the main character) navigated their stormy lives. I was overwhelmed yet appreciative of the in-depth language behind flowers and was grateful for the glossary appendix. Thank you!

This is a beautiful story, although at times so sad and sorry. It's a story about foster children and how so many find it difficult to trust or love. This is about Victoria and her struggles. She comes full circle with the power of flowers and people who truly do love her. Finally she accepts this.

How can it be that the emotions of each character is so deeply felt? Vanessa, you have reached into a depth of caring and humanity that everyone should experience. Well done.

Hace mucho que lo quería. La espera valió la pena, es un libro muy lindo. Si te gustan las flores lo amarás

Love this and enjoy the quality of the printing. Wish it had the Heather flower included.

Loved the book! Could read it again like seeing a movie that you loved, once again!!

Il libro è stupendo, rifinito in tutte le sue parti, dalla rilegatura alle illustrazioni. Lo stato dell'oggetto in questione è ottimo. Lo consiglio assolutamente.