Katelyn's Reviews > The Ballast Seed

Rosie Kinchen had recently returned from maternity leave to her work as a London journalist, when she found out that she was pregnant with her second child. Thrown into a period of mourning for this unexpected change, her difficulties are compounded when her second child is born with a condition that makes it painful for him to eat, and this goes diagnosed for months. Struggling, Kinchen discovers a nearby garden therapy class, and finds solace connecting to plants, both inside and outside. She learns about the histories of plants and reads a memoir by Victorian explorer Marianne North, whose paintings she discovers in dedicated room at Kew Gardens. I found solace in this memoir about motherhood, going through a tough time and plants.