Floral Folklore: the Forgotten Tales Behind Nature’s Most Enchanting Plants

This really lovely book by Alison Davies
tells you what folklore over forty beautifully illustrated flowers are associated with, the origin of the story and an associated ritual that you can perform.

Reading this book brought me a sense of profound peace.

Illustrations by Sarah Wilding.


Quarto Publishing Group—Leaping Hare
Release date: March 5, 2024.

I enjoyed reading this book. It emphasizes floral mythology and crosses into folk beliefs and magic. For it being hyper-focused on this side of floral science, I found the stories included here to be endearing, unique, and fun. I recommend this as good night reading or perhaps alternative bedtime stories for kids.

*** Thank you to Quarto Publishing Group and Leaping Hare for providing this title in exchange for an honest review.

Subtitled “The Forgotten Tales Behind Nature’s Most Enchanting Plants,” author Davies has selected 40 mostly well known flowers and divided them into 4 chapters: Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter. This is a beautiful book about the folklore of each and every flower has a named tale: Anemone is “Aphrodite and Adonis;” Carnation is “The Flower of the Dead;” Phlox is “The Lost Cloud;” Violet is “The Most Beautiful Woman in the World.” You’re tempted to investigate your favorite flower or the most intriguing story title at first — but you’ll be better rewarded by engrossing yourself in each flower of the season as the book continues.

Illustrated beautifully by Sarah Wildling/Wild Lune, each entry gives a description plus the flower meaning (hyacinths are associated with passion and jealousy; lady’s bedstraw with safe childbirth) and geographic folklore origin (mostly European, but others like the African Protea or Egyptian Lotus).

Each story is incredibly interesting. The real surprise of the book is a “ritual” for each flower with instructions on how to carry it out —- the ritual of the pansy is meant to promote kindness and friendship and you’ll need a piece of rose quartz, pansy shrubs, compost, a small pot and water to complete.

As the author concludes, flowers are magical and her rituals for each one are simple affirmations about beauty in the natural world. 5 stars! This would be a great, somewhat different gift for a devoted gardener.

Thank you to Leaping Hare Press/Quarto Publishing and NetGalley for a free advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review!

Arranged according to season, Floral Folklore: The forgotten tales behind nature’s most enchanting plants is steeped in cadence and the rhythm of nature's tides, each bloom revealing it's story as the unfurling of its own tight bud, opening itself to the warmth of the sun.

These are the stories kept close to the heart, rarely spoken, and yet the heart song behind the secret language of flowers given in love or friendship or wordless support in grieving.

Author, Alison Davies' soon to be released title, Floral Folklore, is more than another pretty gardening book to adorn one's coffee table; it is heady and stirring and strangely intimate, as if the reader were inhaling deeply of an ancient perfume being lifted directly off the pages.

Reminiscent of the haunting, deeply personal folk tales interpreted by Jungian analyst and bestselling author of Women Who Run With the Wolves, Clarissa Pinkola Estés, Alison Davies creates a floral tableau that is rich in intercultural myths that give us hints into our own psyche.

I feel the compulsion to use words like, "enchanting" and "breathtaking" and "hypnotic" when trying to describe this work. I find that my own inner language has found a new depth of context in the shared beauty of the folklore of flora; it is as if archetypes are being revealed.

A lovely book of flowers and herbs described in the four growing seasons. Red clover,sunflower, iris, rose, pansy, rosemary, rue, nightshade, peonies, parsley, yarrow and more are illustrated each with a charming story. There is an extremely comprehensive index.The drawings combined with the content produce a relaxing informative reading experience. Highly recommended for anyone who is interested in bonding with and understanding nature with a meditative twist. There is definitely a place in my reference library for this.

Flowers have been used to send messages, convey meaning and feelings, as well as be used as decor/things of beauty since the start of recorded time. Certain flowers had meaning when given and in the 1600s floriography because a way to discretely make your thoughts and feelings known in a way that was socially acceptable. Much in the way today's "left on read" or "liking" a post can convey meaning, flowers have historically done the same. An art that has fallen by the wayside and in need of an update.

I enjoyed the way that this book is an homage to that time, compiling meanings not only for one culture but for several, giving us a modern way to address potential meanings between and across cultures. Personally I did not find value in the rituals/meditations for each flower; it just wasn't something I would use a book to facilitate. The art for each flower was also well done and the pages were set in a way that was both aesthetically pleasing and relaxing.

Thank you to the publisher for providing a copy for me to read and review.

What a pleasant and unique book! I loved learning about so many of my favorite flowers. This would make a great gift, and I expect I will refer back to this when I bring fresh flowers home or plant flowers in my garden. So lovely!

Thank you, NetGalley, for the ARC for my review consideration. All opinions are my own.

I LOVED the illustrations in this book- simple yet beautiful. I also liked learning a bit about each plant and what it is associated with. However, I found that the stories/ folklore to go along with each plant did not hold my interest. I think I would have enjoyed more practical information instead.

Thank you NetGalley and Quarto Publishing Group- Leaping Hare for this ARC
Right off the bat I adored the idea of this book, and Alison Davies did not disappoint at all. This book tells you the folklore of some flowers and herbs, in a fully whimsical way. The art work in this is so lovely, and the different color of pages does such a good job of complementing the art work and flowers. Each flower's page setup is beautifully set up, it gives the scientific name of the flower, then the description of the flower, the meaning of the flower, and its folklore origin. Then it goes into the folklore story, and after the folklore story it gives a nice ritual that goes with the flower.
It is overall absolutely adorable, and factual, and I felt so connected to the flowers as I read about them. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and will definitely be picking it up when it comes out.

The stories written help explain why for example roses are associated with love. It’s beautifully illustrated, and adds in small facts like where the folklore originated. It contains a lot of herbs commonly used as well as common flowers, so you are bound to find your favorite. This book would make a great gift for a gardener.

A nice little collections of floklore-ish stories surronding different flowers and plants from around the world. It's sectioned into the seasons. The illustrations by Sarah Wildling are beautiful, would buy the book for them only to be honest.

This was a great read to learn about the folklore behind many plants, definitely included lots of information that I didn't know before reading this book.

I stumbled across this completely by accident, due to not being shelved under a category that I would normally read. But I'm so glad I did!

Initially it was the cover that caught my eye and then the book title made me want to know more. When I read the description, I decided to take a chance on something different.

I really think this book was gorgeous. The myths and folklore behind each flower is detailed but short enough to hold your attention.

I would say the pages for each flower are around 4 pages each, with one being dedicated to an illustration of the flower and the other 3 containing a story of how their name came to be or how they are associated with mythology, with a short section also on how you can use the flowers to find moments of calm or manifest feelings of positivity.
Personally, I won't be doing the rituals because that isn't really my thing but I appreciate how others will enjoy it and it was a nice little positive to add.

I love mythology and folklore and enjoyed reading these stories, which were all new to me as I'd never heard of any of them, and I feel I will look at flowers in a different way going forward.
Some of the most memorable of the stories for me were: Anenome, Iris, Daffodil, Tulip, Peony, Rhododendron , Foxglove and Daisy🌷🌸🌱

And a special mention also for the illustrations of the flowers and animals which were equally gorgeous❤

Thank you to Netgalley, Leaping Hare Press and the author for the review copy, provided in exchange for an honest opinion.

This is the perfect coffee table book for any flower lover! Beautiful illustrations and fascinating folklore to accompany an array of plants. Floral Folklore give bite-sized stories that you have probably never heard. It's a lovely blend of mythology, spirituality, and education.

I enjoyed reading this alone as well as out loud to my young daughter who was completely enthralled with the stories. You certainly will not be able to look at your garden in the same way after picking this up!

Thank you to NetGalley, Quarto Publishing Group –Leaping Hare, and Leaping Hare Press for an ARC of this beautiful book!

This book is so fun and informative! Entertaining stories, rituals, and gorgeous illustrations! I’ll definitely be getting this to reference how to identify flowers and what they are good for!

I really enjoyed this book! The artwork is amazing and really enjoyed the association between the flowers and tales, I now want to grow the flowers from my favourite tales. Really recommend for those interested in flowers and folklore tales.

I loved the illustrations in this book but unfortunately due to the way the ARC format is, I am not going to be able to finish it. it's kind of hard to follow the stories when I have to zoom in and out often to read them.

This beautiful book has a unique concept in my opinion. There are tales dedicated to a particular flower from different locations. The tales are short and delightful, but the illustrations of the flowers are breathtaking! I absolutely loved the artwork. The flowers were drawn in a stunning way. Really loved this book. Highly recommend it.

If you're interested in herbalism and folk lore, this is a gorgeous addition to your library. The illustrations are beautiful and I really enjoyed the way that herbal medicine is woven into folklore stories.

The only downside was that as an ARC reader I could only read this on my NetGalley Shelf App, which made it difficult to fully appreciate since the font was quite small. I'm certain that will be a non issue for anyone reading physical copies of the book!

** Thank you to Netgalley and Leaping Hare Press for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review **

Let me start by saying what a beautiful book this is, the illustrations on the front cover and inside are just lovely, I am sure the physical copy will be something else. This is a book that can be enjoyed on its own or used for a reference to various flowers that grow all over the world, both wild and in your garden. I am pleased to say that I recognised all the flowers noted within the book, and was really please to see my own favourite featured, the beautiful Peony. It is worth saying, I live in the UK so lots of the flowers grown here in our climate and some used commonly as herbs.

Featured in the book are various flowers and are listed by Seasons, starting in the Spring. You get a detailed illustration and description of the plant then a list of its attributes, and the legend behind it. The stories are folklore, handed down through generations and really interesting. Also included are affirmations you can practice if you so wish associated with the each flower.

On reading the foreword from the book this passage really stood out to me personally.

Reading each story in this book, I am reminded, as I often feel at sunset or when the sun sines on snow covered trees, that the ancient ways must not be forgotten, and should be protected at all costs, for within them lies the medicine that soothes and restores human weariness, and plugs us back into the vastness of universal wisdom and beauty.

This is beautifully complied book, which I sure would appeal to any keep gardener, hedge witch or people just interested in different cultures and beliefs.