Fresh Water for Flowers: A Novel
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- Create Date：2021-07-11 07:51:07
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Valérie Perrin
- ISBN：1609456769
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Summary
A 2020 INDIES INTRODUCE PICK
A POIGNANT RUNAWAY BESTSELLER full of French charm and memorable characters， Fresh Water for Flowers is Valérie Perrin’s English debut。
A POIGNANT RUNAWAY BESTSELLER full of French charm and memorable characters， Fresh Water for Flowers is Valérie Perrin’s English debut。
Violette Toussaint is the caretaker at a cemetery in a small town in Bourgogne。 Casual mourners， regular visitors， and sundry colleagues—gravediggers， groundskeepers， and a priest—visit her to warm themselves in her lodge， where laughter， companionship， and occasional tears mix with the coffee she offers them。 Her life is lived to the rhythms of their funny， moving confidences。
Violette’s routine is disrupted one day by the arrival of Julien Sole—local police chief—who insists on scattering the ashes of his recently deceased mother on the gravesite of a complete stranger。 It soon becomes clear that Julien’s inexplicable gesture is intertwined with Violette’s own difficult past。
With Fresh Water for Flowers， Valérie Perrin has given readers an intimately told story that tugs on the heartstrings about a woman who believes obstinately in happiness， despite it all。 A number one bestseller in France， Fresh Water for Flowers is a heartwarming and tender story that will stay will readers for years after the final page is turned。
Reviews
Maud Marsot
，
« Changer l’eau des fleurs » de Valérie Perrin。 L’histoire se passe dans un cimetière et pourtant， elle est douce et réconfortante comme une peluche qu’on cajole quand on est petit et qu’on a un coup de blues。 Violette Toussaint， une femme sans âge， garde cimetière， évoque sa vie compliquée depuis sa naissance sous X en passant par l’abandon de domicile de son mari。 Ce récit est entrecoupé de moments de vie au rythme du cimetière et des enterrements。 Des sujets difficiles sont abordés， mais sous « Changer l’eau des fleurs » de Valérie Perrin。 L’histoire se passe dans un cimetière et pourtant， elle est douce et réconfortante comme une peluche qu’on cajole quand on est petit et qu’on a un coup de blues。 Violette Toussaint， une femme sans âge， garde cimetière， évoque sa vie compliquée depuis sa naissance sous X en passant par l’abandon de domicile de son mari。 Ce récit est entrecoupé de moments de vie au rythme du cimetière et des enterrements。 Des sujets difficiles sont abordés， mais sous un angle qui n’est pas larmoyant， plutôt drôle et optimiste， avec un oeil toujours bienveillant。 Jusqu’à ce qu’on prenne connaissance d’un événement particulier de la vie de Violette， et là， le livre prend un ton plus grave。 Et puis il y a Sasha… J’ai été émue aux larmes， quelle bulle de douceur malgré l’adversité， c’est authentique et bouleversant ♥️ 。。。more
Ted
，
This onion has lots of layers that are artfully pulled back one at a time。 With each layer revealed， the story shifts。 And shifts。 It's a story of hope and sadness， of being hemmed in and released， of friends and lovers。 Very well done。 This onion has lots of layers that are artfully pulled back one at a time。 With each layer revealed， the story shifts。 And shifts。 It's a story of hope and sadness， of being hemmed in and released， of friends and lovers。 Very well done。 。。。more
Barbara Schoumacher
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Tout simplement magnifique
Claire
，
Falso， fasullo， farlocco。
Mariel
，
I love these characters。 By the end of the book you’re even sympathizing with the ones you hated at the beginning。 The writing is very poetic and romantic without sacrificing the story。 I wasn’t expecting a suspenseful mystery novel， but I enjoyed every second。 I wanted to crawl into this book and have a glass of port with Violette。
Judith Bowen
，
Perhaps not quite as good as the elegance of the hedgehog but i found a similarity。。。many more corpses though。 I enjoyed reading it。
Chiara
，
E' stato un libro inaspettato。Come avevo sentito in altre occasioni， le prime 180 pagine circa le ho trovate pesanti e noiose， non riuscivo a capire il senso della trama。Poi， arrivata a pagina 189， la svolta che mi ha fatto partire in quarta come un treno ad alta velocità e non l'ho più mollato。WOW！Se dovessi consigliarlo a qualcuno gli direi solo di tenere duro per le prime 180 pagine。 E' stato un libro inaspettato。Come avevo sentito in altre occasioni， le prime 180 pagine circa le ho trovate pesanti e noiose， non riuscivo a capire il senso della trama。Poi， arrivata a pagina 189， la svolta che mi ha fatto partire in quarta come un treno ad alta velocità e non l'ho più mollato。WOW！Se dovessi consigliarlo a qualcuno gli direi solo di tenere duro per le prime 180 pagine。 。。。more
Maura
，
La fama che circonda questo romanzo l' ha sicuramente penalizzato ai miei occhi。。。 mi aspettavo un capolavoro e in realtà ho trovato un libro carino， molto godibile ma mai （in nessun punto） eccelso。。。 non sono riuscita ad affezionarmi a nessun personaggio， non ho apprezzato nemmeno le storie d' amore così banali。。。 è una lettura da ombrellone， non capisco davvero come abbia potuto diventare un fenomeno letterario。 A parte la facilità di fruizione non mi ha convinto mai a pieno。。。 La fama che circonda questo romanzo l' ha sicuramente penalizzato ai miei occhi。。。 mi aspettavo un capolavoro e in realtà ho trovato un libro carino， molto godibile ma mai （in nessun punto） eccelso。。。 non sono riuscita ad affezionarmi a nessun personaggio， non ho apprezzato nemmeno le storie d' amore così banali。。。 è una lettura da ombrellone， non capisco davvero come abbia potuto diventare un fenomeno letterario。 A parte la facilità di fruizione non mi ha convinto mai a pieno。。。 。。。more
Kimberly Miller
，
I kept waiting for it to get good。 It was a decent story but way too slow and boring
Ireland
，
I'm not worthy of writing a review for this masterpiece。 I finished it last night and I have a book hangover。 I'm terrified to start my next book， there is no way it can be anything but disappointing。 Your view of this book will depend on how you feel about death， funerals， memories， and loss。 I'm comfortable with those subjects， so I was all in。 Violette is a the ultimate woman， broken but brave。 She keeps moving forward and finding new ways to heal。 She is a little stubborn about love， but she I'm not worthy of writing a review for this masterpiece。 I finished it last night and I have a book hangover。 I'm terrified to start my next book， there is no way it can be anything but disappointing。 Your view of this book will depend on how you feel about death， funerals， memories， and loss。 I'm comfortable with those subjects， so I was all in。 Violette is a the ultimate woman， broken but brave。 She keeps moving forward and finding new ways to heal。 She is a little stubborn about love， but she has been betrayed so often that is understandable。 If I had a complaint it's that there are so many parallel stories that tie together in so many time periods， I was a bit confused at times。 Also， there are many things that don't translate。 I always want there to be footnotes to help me understand。 For instance， Violette is level-crossing keeper， I had no idea what that was。 And it's actually a major part of the story。 As the story went on I could tell it had something to do with a train crossing， but an explanation would be nice。 Also the references to books， music， movies， and TV shows had no relevance to me。 That's understandable， it's just an observation。 I also didn't like that two stories had a similar 'problem'， but very uncomfortable。 And two other stories take the same odd turn。 It didn't seem logical either time。 I learned that cemeteries in France are very different than the US。 I've never been to the grave of a loved one， and some of these characters come daily。 I also don't know what a tombstone plaque is。 The writing is the real star here， each word is chosen with ultimate care and every simile and metaphor is thought-provoking。 The title has so many nuances within the story， you can take your pick as which one works for you。 。。。more
Carla Patterson
，
This was an experience I totally loved because of a combination of imagery， structure， subject matter（s）， and compassion。 I really want to read it in French as well and feel lucky that I have enough study behind me to make a go of it。 I really want to read this in Perrin’s own words and phrases and I also intend to listen to all of the music she mentions （I know some but not all of it） and follow up on the quotes。 I recommend this novel highly。
Wanda
，
"Fresh Water for Flowers" is a beautiful story of Violette Touissant， a cemetery keeper。 Violette did not have a family or love as a child。 Then， in her late teens， she married a man who did not know how to love her。 The characters in "Fresh Water for Flowers" are outstanding， each with their own story。 The stories overlap with Violette's story and create a wonderful story about love， loss， tragedy， and joy。 "Fresh Water for Flowers" is a beautiful story of Violette Touissant， a cemetery keeper。 Violette did not have a family or love as a child。 Then， in her late teens， she married a man who did not know how to love her。 The characters in "Fresh Water for Flowers" are outstanding， each with their own story。 The stories overlap with Violette's story and create a wonderful story about love， loss， tragedy， and joy。 。。。more
PorshaJo
，
RTC
Maine McMac
，
What a delightful book！ The author weaves distinct stories into one complete， beautiful tale of loss， healing， and above all， love。 The book was expertly and deftly translated from French， losing none of the beauty of the lands in which the story unfolds。 The relationships between the characters are so touching; the personalities clear and well-developed。 I didn't want to arrive at the last page， however doing so was very satisfying。 What a delightful book！ The author weaves distinct stories into one complete， beautiful tale of loss， healing， and above all， love。 The book was expertly and deftly translated from French， losing none of the beauty of the lands in which the story unfolds。 The relationships between the characters are so touching; the personalities clear and well-developed。 I didn't want to arrive at the last page， however doing so was very satisfying。 。。。more
Carlo
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Bel romanzo che narra la vita di Violette， orfana che si innamora di Philippe， un ragazzo che sposerà e avrà una figlia。 La sua vita si snoda tra casellante di un passaggio a livello e， in seguito， guardiana di un piccolo cimitero di provincia。 Quest’ultima attività porterà una svolta alla sua vita tra gioie， dolori， tradimenti。Un buon libro da leggere
Shannon
，
It is difficult for me to sort out my attitudes to this book。 For the first 50 pages， I was bored and considered quitting， but I have a 100 page rule which means I have to give a book at least 100 pages to "grab" me before I give up on it。 （Not an entirely strict rule， but one that has usually served me well。） Fortunately， the narrative began to pick up and I read quite happily until about the 300 page mark， when the book turned more salacious than I like and more convoluted besides。 I realized It is difficult for me to sort out my attitudes to this book。 For the first 50 pages， I was bored and considered quitting， but I have a 100 page rule which means I have to give a book at least 100 pages to "grab" me before I give up on it。 （Not an entirely strict rule， but one that has usually served me well。） Fortunately， the narrative began to pick up and I read quite happily until about the 300 page mark， when the book turned more salacious than I like and more convoluted besides。 I realized that it was replaying earlier scenes by viewing them through different character's points of view and it was redundant and irritating。 I laid the book aside for two days while I read other things。 I eventually returned to it， having invested hours of my time and being over two-thirds of the way through。 I decided to skim the rest， as I just wanted to know what role Julien Seul's mother and lover played in his and Violette's lives。 However， due to the nature of the sequencing of the story line， I couldn't do that and still make sense of what was happening。 So， rather resignedly， I read through the chapters （mericifully short） as quickly as I could while still grasping the details。 Imagine my happy surprise when the story finally began to coalesce in a more satisfying way！ I must add that this book reminded me very much of another French novel I have read in translation。 That book is: BLACK WATER LILIES。 That one is more of a mystery， but they certainly share several themes: death， purpose of life， love of many kinds， the effects of time， and most of all， perception。 They are similar stylistically also。 I don't know if that's just coincidental between these two books， or whether their shared traits are intrinsic to French culture。 I suspect the latter。 The protagonists （both women） in the two works are extremely down-to-earth， hard-working， practical， and clever， but who bury their sorrows and internalize their pain。 The men in each story seem to follow cliched stereotypes to a surprising degree。 And finally， both plots jump around in an almost random way to tell their tales。Because of all the contradictions in flow and the many scenes of raw， ugly sex， I can't rate it higher than three stars。 Other readers may find it more appealing than I did。P。S。 Even though this was not my favorite read， I did find chapter 21， dealing with riding a unicycle and wearing a white shroud， to ward off teen-age revelers in a cemetery， to be the funniest thing I have read anywhere in a long time！ If nothing else， I would recommend that chapter as a fun stand-alone！ 。。。more
Stefanni Lynch
，
Everyone has a story。 Violette， the keeper of a small cemetery in France， has a particularly sad and lovely story。 I loved the characters， except for Phillippe and his parents。 Yes， there is sentimentality in this novel， but for some reason it was acceptable， even endearing to me。 Who knows why we love a book？ I just know that I loved Violette’s garden， her cozy and welcoming home， her carefully curated style， and the kind of mother she was。 I loved Julien and Nathan。 I especially loved Sasha， w Everyone has a story。 Violette， the keeper of a small cemetery in France， has a particularly sad and lovely story。 I loved the characters， except for Phillippe and his parents。 Yes， there is sentimentality in this novel， but for some reason it was acceptable， even endearing to me。 Who knows why we love a book？ I just know that I loved Violette’s garden， her cozy and welcoming home， her carefully curated style， and the kind of mother she was。 I loved Julien and Nathan。 I especially loved Sasha， who reminded me of a dear friend who taught me so much。 You will want to meet all of these people。 I highly recommend that you do！ 。。。more
Ilarencik
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Un libro sull'elaborazione del lutto e sulla speranza。 Forse funziona meglio con chi crede。 Un libro sull'elaborazione del lutto e sulla speranza。 Forse funziona meglio con chi crede。 。。。more
Kate
，
A beautiful book！！ The first book by this French writer that's been translated into English， it's the story of a woman who is a cemetery caretaker in a small village。 While it's a chronicle of one person's life， her story unfolds through the perspectives of the other characters in her life as well as her own。 The introduction of these other perspectives is handled so deftly， our own perspective changes as we acquire more information about each of the characters。 At its core is a mystery， one tha A beautiful book！！ The first book by this French writer that's been translated into English， it's the story of a woman who is a cemetery caretaker in a small village。 While it's a chronicle of one person's life， her story unfolds through the perspectives of the other characters in her life as well as her own。 The introduction of these other perspectives is handled so deftly， our own perspective changes as we acquire more information about each of the characters。 At its core is a mystery， one that we know may not be resolved。 Some people have said that it's sad - and it is - but it is also joyful and deep and lovely。 I thought it was brilliant！ 。。。more
Céline Olivetti
，
Ik wou dat ik het 10 sterren kon geven。 Minstens。
Adri Dosi
，
Ehm。。。Kdože tu knihu tolik vychválil？ Marketing？ No。。。 má i velké pozitivní odezvu ze zahraničí， což tedy vlastně nevím proč。 Kniha má pěknou obálku。Z knihy je cítit moderní francouzský styl psaní， který je zajímavý。 Nicméně s tím bych asi s chválou skončila。 Zajímalo by mě， kdo tam viděl to pozitivní a veselé naladění， protože ta kniha je depresivní， smutná a zahořklá。 Jako sice chápu， proč se hlavní hrdinka rozhodla pro hřbitov a taky chápu jejího muže。。 i když vzhledem k tomu， co tam je napsá Ehm。。。Kdože tu knihu tolik vychválil？ Marketing？ No。。。 má i velké pozitivní odezvu ze zahraničí， což tedy vlastně nevím proč。 Kniha má pěknou obálku。Z knihy je cítit moderní francouzský styl psaní， který je zajímavý。 Nicméně s tím bych asi s chválou skončila。 Zajímalo by mě， kdo tam viděl to pozitivní a veselé naladění， protože ta kniha je depresivní， smutná a zahořklá。 Jako sice chápu， proč se hlavní hrdinka rozhodla pro hřbitov a taky chápu jejího muže。。 i když vzhledem k tomu， co tam je napsáno， jak je možné， že byl jejím mužem。No。。。 Vlastně od začátku， až do konce， to je stěžování， sice se to snaží tvářit jinak， ale v reálu to chce politovat。。。 pro manipulaci s emocemi používá smrti jiných。。。 No je to morbidní a bulvární。。 Takové hořké sesumírování svého promarněného života。Touha po klidu a smíření， odpuštění。。。 。。。more
Rachel
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This book was a very slow burn for me。 Took me almost 2 months to finish。 I found myself looking at it and deciding not to pick it up。 Not because I didn’t enjoy it， but I think because it was slow-moving and full of grief and heartache。 And yet it was also full of life， beauty， and meaning。 It was much different than anything I’ve read in recent memory。 Ultimately， I enjoyed it。 Side note: I’m not sure why the synopsis says this book is funny。 I found absolutely nothing to be funny within these This book was a very slow burn for me。 Took me almost 2 months to finish。 I found myself looking at it and deciding not to pick it up。 Not because I didn’t enjoy it， but I think because it was slow-moving and full of grief and heartache。 And yet it was also full of life， beauty， and meaning。 It was much different than anything I’ve read in recent memory。 Ultimately， I enjoyed it。 Side note: I’m not sure why the synopsis says this book is funny。 I found absolutely nothing to be funny within these pages。 。。。more
Antonio Amadori
，
Wonderful book Amazing book， a very poignant story but very expressive。 It’s a beautiful and well written book and I have enjoyed every pages of it。
Lisa Ard
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I loved this book。 Terrific writing， engaging characters and an unusual plot woven together with themes of love， loss， regret， despair， hope and renewal。
Alexia
，
LHistoire d une femme gardienne de cimetiere qui ecrit les histoire de tous les enterrements et familles qu elle voit passer。Elle meme a une histoire pas tres heureuse
Beata
，
A beautiful and moving tale of a woman who is a caretaker at a cemetery， living alone and keeping a diary of every funeral she has attended to。 This is the moment in Violette's life when we meet her。 Questions immediately appear: How did she find this unusual profession？ What about her family？ Why does she live in a relative isolation？ And many more 。。。 From the very beginning I had a feeling there is more to her life， and indeed there is。Violette stole my heart completely。 What she went through A beautiful and moving tale of a woman who is a caretaker at a cemetery， living alone and keeping a diary of every funeral she has attended to。 This is the moment in Violette's life when we meet her。 Questions immediately appear: How did she find this unusual profession？ What about her family？ Why does she live in a relative isolation？ And many more 。。。 From the very beginning I had a feeling there is more to her life， and indeed there is。Violette stole my heart completely。 What she went through from her birth， childhood， adolescence and maturity did not leave me unmoved。 I often just sat and listened to her quiet story and felt privileged to be the one she talked to。The translation is brilliant， I would never guess this novel was written is French。 And so is the narration。 Real feast for my heart and mind。 。。。more
Julie A。
，
Ce livre n’était pas pour moi。 Il m’a beaucoup pesé。 Dommage。
Judith Cenkus
，
Another book that 1） starts out great 2） has so much potential 3） disappointed me as it went along by traveling back and forth in time。 What year is it？ Wait， what has happened at this point vs what has not？ Wore me out。
Dutika Valentina
，
La vita dei vivi si intreccia con quella dei morti。 Storie ed emozioni di personaggi diversi raccontati con delicatezza ma anche con un po’ di mistero。 Si legge tutto d’un fiato。 Molto bello！
riru
，