For those of you that haven't or couldn't attend book club lately, we'll be publishing the previous months' discussion questions here. I hope eventually to post discussion questions for all of the books we've covered since I took over a couple of years ago and beyond, all the way to the beginning over a decade and a half ago. It will take a while. Until then, we will be posting discussion questions on a weekly basis. Here are the questions from a 2017 title, The Language of Flowers. We hope these questions spark discussions of your own.
The Language of Flowers
by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
Summary:
A mesmerizing, moving, and elegantly written debut novel, The Language of Flowers beautifully weaves past and present, creating a vivid portrait of an unforgettable woman whose gift for flowers helps her change the lives of others even as she struggles to overcome her own troubled past.
The Victorian language of flowers was used to convey romantic expressions: honeysuckle for devotion, asters for patience, and red roses for love. But for Victoria Jones, it's been more useful in communicating grief, mistrust, and solitude. After a childhood spent in the foster-care system, she is unable to get close to anybody, and her only connection to the world is through flowers and their meanings.
Now eighteen and emancipated from the system, Victoria has nowhere to go and sleeps in a public park, where she plants a small garden of her own. Soon a local florist discovers her talents, and Victoria realizes she has a gift for helping others through the flowers she chooses for them. But a mysterious vendor at the flower market has her questioning what's been missing in her life, and when she's forced to confront a painful secret from her past, she must decide whether it's worth risking everything for a second chance at happiness.
Discussion Questions
How did you feel about Victoria as a character? Did her resistance to love and happiness frustrate you or did you feel like you understood her complexity?
What are initial thoughts of Meredith, Victoria’s caseworker? Could she have done more for Victoria?
What flower does Victoria choose to give Meredith? Is Victoria’s assessment fair?
What potential do Elizabeth, Renata, and Grant see in Victoria that she has a hard time seeing in herself?
Victoria and Elizabeth both struggle with the idea of being part of a family. What does it mean to you to be part of a family? What defines family?
While Victoria has been hungry and malnourished often in her life, food ends up meaning more than just nourishment to her. Why?
Why do you think Elizabeth waits so long before trying to patch things up with her long-lost sister Catherine? What is the reason for her to do so?
Victoria doesn’t recognize Grant at the flower market. What does he give her and how does she respond?
Why does Grant persist with the relationship? Are there any signs at all that she wants a relationship?
The first week after her daughter’s birth goes surprisingly well for Victoria. What is it that makes Victoria feel unable to care for her child? And what is it that allows her to ultimately rejoin her family?
At the end of the novel, Victoria learns that moss grows without roots. What does this mean, and why is it such a revelation for her?
What did you think of the structure of the book – the alternating chapters of past and present? In what ways did the two storylines parallel each other and how did they diverge?
How were the titles of the sections reflections on the plot? On Victoria’s life?
One of the major themes in the book is forgiveness and second chances – do you think Victoria deserves on after the things she did (both as a child and as an adult)? What about Catherine? And Elizabeth?
The novel touches on many different themes (love, family, forgiveness, second chances). Which do you think is the most important? And what did you think was ultimately the lesson?
Based on your reading of the novel, what are your impressions of the foster care system in America? What could be improved?
Knowing what you know about the language of flowers, to whom would you send a bouquet and what would you want it to say?
Did you ever look up definitions to flowers that weren’t in the back of the book? Did they surprise you?