the Language of Flowers, book club questions

Source:  http://www.randomhouse.com/rhpg/features/vanessa_diffenbaugh/book-clubs/

Discussion Questions for THE LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS

Author Q&A

1. What potential do Elizabeth, Renata, and Grant see in Victoria that she has a hard time seeing in herself?
2. While Victoria has been hungry and malnourished often in her life, food ends up meaning more than just nourishment to her.  Why?
3. 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?
4. Why do you think Elizabeth waits so long before trying to patch things up with her long-lost sister Catherine?  What is the impetus for her to do so?
5. 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 after the week ends?  And what is it that allows her to ultimately rejoin her family?
6. One of the major themes in The Language of Flowers is forgiveness and second chances – do you think Victoria deserves one after the things she did (both as a child and as an adult)?  What about Catherine?  And Elizabeth?
7. 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?
8. 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?
9. 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?
10. Based on your reading of the novel, what are your impressions of the foster care system in America?  What could be improved?
11. Knowing what you now know about the language of the flowers, to whom would you send a bouquet and what would you want it to say?

the Language of Flowers, Vanessa Diffenbaugh

A 3 minute video of the author talking about her novel:  click here to see video on YouTube

and some reviews . . . .

SF Gate (San Francisco): " In the end, she offers a cautionary tale about what happens to kids who've grown without families, one that strives to be honest but still hopeful. Children like Victoria may be able to survive on their own, but in order to do better than that - to thrive - they need support. But it's never too late to learn how to love."

New York Times :"At first blush it sounds like something Dickens might have come up with, had Dickens been deeply interested in flower arranging"

the Globe & Mail:  "In this absorbing and delicately wrought debut novel, Diffenbaugh heeds the creative-writing maxim: Write what you know. She has been a foster mother and has taught art and writing in low-income communities. This experience is discernible in The Language of Flowers. The idea that an angry young girl such as Victoria would actually be interested in flowers and their meanings seems implausible on one level, and yet Diffenbaugh uses to good effect the belief that evergreen hope lies nascent within most damaged kids."

Kate Greenaway's Language of Flowers, 1884
the author's inspiration for the novel