The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart - Book Review
Genre: Fiction | Contemporary fiction
Author: Holly Ringland
Year: 2018
Pages: 400
Content warning: Domestic violence
I’ve always been a fan of light-hearted and jovial stories, ones that I can quickly devour to escape everyday life (which has become much needed this year). When I first laid eyes on The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart, I was a little apprehensive. The cover pulled me in straight away with its gorgeous illustrations which are featured throughout the contents of the book. Although it looked as if it dealt with a difficult topic, something that I had not encountered in my reading previously, I was determined to find out what happened to Alice Hart.
As a little girl, Alice lives with her mother and father in their small house by the seaside, surrounded by sugar canes. The nine-year-old protagonist quickly learns how to navigate her father’s moods and dreams of setting him on fire, believing that he can rise from the ashes a better father. When tragedy strikes, Alice’s life is swiftly uprooted. She has to leave behind everything she has ever known to live inland on a native flower farm with a grandmother she has never met. Feeling afraid and alone, Alice finds solace in the language of flowers. When family secrets are uncovered, will Alice find history repeating itself? Or, can she take control of her own narrative?
This is a beautifully poignant debut novel by Australian writer Holly Ringland. The story follows Alice from doe-eyed child to adult, interweaving the changing Australian landscape from the Queensland coast to the vast outback with the language of native Australian flowers. Through long-kept secrets and her family’s past, Alice’s life continues to be shaped by water, fire and flowers as she grows up.
Now I’ll be honest, I have to be in the right headspace for this book. The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart is beautifully told, documenting a woman’s turbulent life story and her resonance with floriography. There are some confronting moments which, at times, make it difficult to read on, but it all cultivates in making Alice who she grows up to be.
I found that the plot lulled occasionally, but I was spurred on by my desire to see Alice thrive away from her family’s controlling grasp.
Nevertheless, this book is deeply moving, and Ringland writes so eloquently and creatively; her uncanny ability for writing certainly paints a vivid picture. The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart is one of those tender tales that will stay with you long after you turn the final page.
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★.5