The Last Garden

Product Information

Present day: Emma Lovell, who has dedicated her career to breathing new life into long-neglected gardens, has just been given the opportunity of a lifetime: to restore the gardens of the famed Highbury House, designed in 1907 by her hero, Venetia Smith. But as Emma dives deeper into the gardens’ past, she begins to uncover secrets that have long lain buried. A talented artist with a growing reputation for her ambitious work, Venetia Smith has carved out a niche for herself as a garden designer to industrialists, solicitors and bankers looking to show off their wealth with sumptuous country houses. When she is hired to design the gardens of Highbury House, she is determined to make them a triumph, but the gardens --- and the people she meets --- promise to change her life forever. The third timeline occurred during World War II. It was a time when lives were lost, men were away fighting the war, and women were relied on more and more to fill some of the jobs once held by men. Diana Symonds had become a widow when her husband was killed in the war. Now the mistress of Highbury House, she had given permission to make part of the house into a Convalescent Hospital for injured soldiers. Diana’s story and that of her cook, Stella Adderton and the land girl, Beth Pedley all became intertwined and connected around the mysterious Winter Garden. I found the stories interesting, especially related to the gardens. I'd never thought much about the large gardens on a country estate beside them being beautiful, so it was interesting to read of the first architect during the 1900s, the gardens being requisitioned during the war, and then current day, trying to reconstruct the original gardens.

Diana Symonds is the owner of the Highbury House. Once she was “determined to be an excellent caretaker of the grounds,” but the war has changed everything. Present Day: Emma Lovett, who has dedicated her life to breathing new life into long-neglected gardens, has just been given the opportunity of a lifetime: to restore the gardens of the famed Highbury House, designed in 1907 by her hero Venetia Smith. But as Emma dives deeper into the garden’s past, she begins to uncover secrets that have long been hidden from history. This garden was never presented as a happy place, nor the project as an emotionally satisfying one for the designer or the owner. Although the book was garden-centric, it was more a story of love and loss---and women's aspirations. The garden was the foil for presenting these emotional issues, but it was really never the star of this book. We also meet two other women who had something to do with the gardens and Highbury House. Each time we meet one of the women, we find a little more about the garden, their lives, and their connection to it all.Beth Pedley, 1944, worked on a nearby farm. She would deliver goods to Highbury House and loved the gardens. She also wanted to and did sketch the gardens. These sketches were helpful to Emma. I have been a huge fan of Ms. Kelly for quite a while now. I loved her previous two books: The Light Over London and The Whispers of War. When I saw that she had a new book coming out, I knew I had to read it. And it most certainly did not disappoint. Which time period do you wish you could visit? Who from the novel would you most like to meet? Why? WWII is a super popular subgenre of Historical Fiction and sometimes it feels like I've 'read it all' but I always enjoy it when authors include new-to-me aspects of the war. In this book, I learned about how the British government expropriated country estates for the British army to use as convalescent homes for wounded soldiers. I also enjoyed seeing the different roles women had during the war - land girl, cook, nurse, business owner, wealthy estate owner - and appreciated the depth and complexity Kelly gives her protagonists as they face daunting issues of war and self-discovery. Three women across time are connected by a garden in Kelly’s enjoyable and richly detailed latest… Kelly balances Emma’s detective work reviewing papers and records found in the house with Venetia’s slow-burn tragedy and the twist that defines Beth’s relationship to the gardens. Kelly easily delivers everything her fans will expect.” — Publisher’s Weekly

A talented artist with a growing reputation for her ambitious work, Venetia Smith has carved out a niche for herself as a garden designer to industrialists, solicitors, and bankers looking to show off their wealth with sumptuous country houses. When she is hired to design the gardens of Highbury House, she is determined to make them a triumph, but the gardens—and the people she meets—promise to change her life forever. The book is divided into four sections, one for each season. Do the lives of each narrator fit with each season? Discuss Venetia’s, Beth’s, Diana’s, Stella’s, and Emma’s transformations from winter to spring to summer to autumn. How do each of their character developments mirror what each season represents? A talented artist with a growing reputation for her ambitious work, Venetia Smith has carved out a niche for herself as a garden designer to well-to-do industrialists, solicitors, and bankers looking to show off their wealth with sumptuous country houses. She is determined to make Highbury House a triumph, but the gardens there—and the people she meets—will change her life forever. An engrossing portrait of three generations of women longing to find their place in the complicated times in which they live. Blooming with warmth and heartbreak." —Brooke Lea Foster, author of Summer Darlings The book highlights the way that the socioeconomic status of women has changed over the years by giving the reader a first hand look at some strong female protagonists.I would recommend this book to any who enjoy historical fiction, gardening and it's history and even women studies. I found it to be an enjoyable and even educational read. I learned much about gardens and the commandeering of estates during the wars in Britain. This reading group guide for The Last Garden in England includes an introduction, discussion questions, and ideas for enhancing your book club. The suggested questions are intended to help your reading group find new and interesting angles and topics for your discussion. We hope that these ideas will enrich your conversation and increase your enjoyment of the book.

Personally, I loved the World War II time line the most. My favourite characters were Beth Pedley and Diana Symonds. Along with the three story lines, there were also three love stories which were integral to the novel. A little-known-but-soon-to-be-famous garden designer, Venetia Smith, specializes in long-neglected gardens. She is working to design elaborate gardens for famous Highbury House, a Downtown Abbey type home for British landed aristocrats.This was easily one of my favorite books this year, with Ms. Kelly being one of my favorite authors. She has most certainly done it again. Bravo. I loved this! I would recommend it to those liking historical fiction, resourceful women, and a bit of intricacy. The sophisticated writing drew me in and I’d like to read more by this author.

Along with the beautiful writing of Ms. Kelly, the gardens, and the story line, there also is some romance in each time period. Despite loving historical fiction, I'm sorry to say this one did not do much for me. Perhaps it's because I'm not a gardener. Despite what the book description promises, I did not find this either "poignant" or "unforgettable".In a war-torn city, a little girl tends to the last garden. But everyone is leaving and soon the girl has to leave too. The garden is all alone now but soon the seeds scatter throughout the city and the roots take hold. Inspired by true events in Syria and war gardens around the world and throughout history, The Last Garden is a thoughtful, tender story of hope, touching on issues of conflict and migration, from a talented debut picture book pairing. Text Rationale: Diana suffers a great deal of loss during the war, losing both her husband and her son. Her grief is acute, and it becomes clear that she also felt she lost a part of herself when she married and became a mother. What do you think of Bobby’s adoption? Of her choice to call him Robert, the given name he shared with Robin? Of the choice to bury the adoption papers and keep his true ancestry a secret? Do you think she ultimately finds peace? If so, do you agree with how she found it? I've always been an admirer of gardens, so this novel appealed to me right away. The stunning cover also attracted my attention. Unlike many historical novels that feature a 'dual timeline', this one has a 'triple timeline' which the author skillfully weaves together. Julia Kelly's captivating novel, The Last Garden in England, is as immersive as it is enchanting...Historical fiction at its very best." - Patti Callahan, New York Times bestselling author of Becoming Mrs. Lewis We meet Emma, present day, who was commissioned to restore the gardens of Highbury House that were designed by Venetia Smith to what they looked like in 1907. Emma had no photos but did some research.