[[Vanessa]] The first thing that must be said about The Language of Flowers is that it is, above all, an enjoyable, well-crafted and imaginative story that will move and engross many readers. It is the first novel by Vanessa Diffenbaugh, an activist who works with foster youth, and I have no doubt that it will be a great success.

The narrator of the novel is Victoria Jones, a young woman who, as an orphan, was never permanently adopted, and has spent most of her life in children’s homes. The memories of her many stints in the care of foster parents, who would eventually send her away each time, have left Victoria scarred and troubled. To the point that, even though she’s now 18 and no longer in the custody of the state, it seems she may never find happiness or a sense of purpose in life. Victoria, however, has a remarkable understanding of what flowers symbolise, and how they were used to communicate by lovers in Victorian England. By virtue of this fluency in the language of flowers, she begins to rebuild her life. But Victoria cannot move on from her heartbreaking childhood until she returns to the foster home where she learned the language of flowers and confronts exactly why this language means so much to her.

One of the cornerstones of Diffenbaugh’s novel is that, as the story progresses, a vast knowledge of the Victorian-era meanings of flowers as a part of ritual courtship rises to the surface, which is almost as intriguing as the plot itself. Importantly, however, the novel wears its references lightly. The strongest aspect of the novel is the composure and subtlety of Victoria’s narrative voice, and Diffenbaugh’s palpable understanding of child psychology. The Language of Flowers is a thoughtful and quietly ambitious book, and one that will not disappoint its readers.

William Heyward is from Readings St Kilda.