Blossom; Laura Dockrill, illustrated by Sara Ogilvie

The team at Barrington Stoke, who regularly seek out amazing authors that deliver brilliant stories in a short number of pages whilst dealing with big and real issues, have struck gold with their latest collaboration with Laura Dockrill. Blossom, one of the recent releases in the collection of accessible reads with a recommended reading age of 8+, will be adored by readers as much as customers love Tutu and Pops’ marvellous flowers.

Blossom has grown up in a house surrounded by plants that have come from the flower market stall that her beloved grandparents, Tutu and Pops used to run. Following their death, the stall has been passed onto Blossom’s parents but when once it brought happiness and joy it is now causing everything to go wrong. Her parents are arguing, dad is struggling, mum cannot study and there’s even talk of selling the stall.

With emotions running high, dreams under threat and caught between desperately wanting to save the stall and stop her family falling apart, can Blossom find a way to plant the seeds of change to save her family and the the flower business…

Blossom is a heart-warming story of ups and downs where everything is blooming wonderfully one moment and then drastically wilting the next. There is family drama, difficult decisions, struggling parents who are trying to work out what their future looks like and a young girl coming to terms with the death of her grandparents, particularly her beloved Tutu.

It would be easy for Blossom to wither but with her roots firmly set in the family flower stall, she is willing do everything she can to save it, even if it involves missing a bit of school. As prickly as a cactus, as bright as a sunflower and as determined as that weed that never gives up, Blossom is a wonderful character who, like her name, blossoms throughout the story.

I loved this book from the first time I saw the front cover, and the lyrical tale that Dockrill tells is perfect. Just like beautiful flowers bloom from the tiniest seeds, she has scattered the seeds of hope, accepting change, the power of community and the healing power of nature that are all in full bloom by the end. This is all beautifully illustrated by Sara Ogilvie and, I haven’t done this yet but I cannot promise that I won’t, I just wanted to colour in all of the flowers. Like all Barrington Stoke books, this is produced using dyslexic friendly font and page tint ensuring a read that is accessible to every reader.

With huge thanks to the peeps at Barrington Stoke for this lovely book.

Recommended for 8+.