Review THE LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS

I found THE LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS by Vanessa
Diffenbaugh to be a most enjoyable read.
The main character Victoria's harrowing
passage through the foster care system was a sensitive work of character development.
We learn why Victoria is so scared, so
vulnerable, so angry, so weary. We can
understand her stubborn need for self-
reliance. She's been let down or has let herself down too many times. When she is
emancipated from the foster care system at 18 because 'there's nowhere else for her to go' she faces the hard truth that it's up to her alone whether she has a life or not. During one of her trial adoptions, she was taught 'the language of flowers' by her foster mother and she carries this with her until it is ultimately the source of her
redemption. Through her own unstable attempts to find love, friendship, motherhood and success, she comes close to having a stable, happy life. Yet she
continues getting in her own way because
of her ingrained lack of self-confidence
and belief that she is damaged beyond
repair. At this juncture when she teeters
at the brink of either grand success or
total failure, she turns to the lessons
she's learned while studying 'the language of flowers.' Because she identifies so completely with these tenets and has the ability to apply them
to the needs and problems of others, she
finds her gift that brings her untold
success happiness.

The title THE LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS sounds
like a rather lighthearted romp. The actual story is filled with quite serious themes with a satisfying ending.
I give it 4.5 stars.