The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh

Oh dear. This was a difficult book for me. I did not like the main character Victoria, or her foster mother, Elizabeth. The story is well written and drew me in at first and I found it fascinating and difficult to put down because I wanted to find out what was going on. Then it became difficult to read because I realized what was going on. Victoria, who had spent her entire life in the foster care system after being abandoned as an infant had her last chance to be adopted at age 10 by a woman named Elizabeth. The story is told in flashbacks from Victoria's adult life beginning at age 18 back to her childhood then her year spent with Elizabeth. While I understood Victoria's childhood decisions, I was appalled by some of her actions that she took as an adult. The book is wonderfully written and I understand why many people like it, but at the same time, it was also very difficult. I enjoyed seeing the different meanings of flowers and thought that was an interesting thing to include.