The Kew Gardens Girls

Kew Gardens in London is one of the largest and most diverse botanical collections in the world. When many of London’s men were off fighting in the First World War, women stepped in to keep the historic gardens running. British author Kerry Barrett (The Secret Letter), writing as “Posy Lovell,” imagines the stories of a few women who enlist as gardeners. Louisa and Ivy bond over a shared love of gardening, as well as their work with the suffragists. Bernie, one of the few men still working at the gardens, becomes fast friends with Ivy and Louisa, and the three of them find a sense of purpose and joy working there. The characters face many serious problems, including unequal pay, conscription, abuse, and being pregnant and unwed, but all of these are quickly and easily resolved, making the story feel simplistic and unrealistic.