Librarian Picks to Get You Ready for May Flowers
Recommended reading on nature-related topics from librarians at the Toledo Lucas County Public Library.
The Language of Flowers
by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
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 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 with nowhere to go, Victoria realizes she has a gift for helping others through the flowers she chooses for them.
Sidewalk Flowers
Poems by JonArno Lawson
Illustrations by Sydney Smith
A little girl collects wildflowers while on a walk with her distracted father. Each flower becomes a gift, and whether the gift is noticed or ignored, both giver and recipient are transformed by their encounter. This wordless picture book is an ode to the importance of small things, small people and small gestures.