A review by sol_journal
Flowerheart by Catherine Bakewell

emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Posted to: Goodreads and The StoryGraph
Posted on: 7 September 2023

3.8 (rounded up to 4) out of 5 stars.

This was such a cute read! Catherine Bakewell described this as being the ‘book of her heart’ in the FaeCrate letter and honestly- it was such a loving novel with kind words tucked between each page. This book has a lot of low reviews for the reason of it being compared to ‘Howl’s Moving Castle’ a lot. I have the bad habit of holding books to other book expectations as well, but I’ve been trying to get better at not doing that. So taking Howl’s off the mind while reading this, you get a little comfort story about a girl just trying to heal and find kindness in a world that hasn’t exactly been very kind to her.
The magic system is very simple and basic. There’s no need to understand how the ins and the outs of it work to a T. It just *is* the way things here are working- every witch having a different specialty, how the Council is the commanding order here. There were a few loosely tied connections and pieces of the story that didn’t fit quite seamlessly in as it could have been done though.

Character wise, it was okay too. If you see yourself in the always anxious, always nervous Clara, then the characters will easily find a home in your heart. If you aren’t as insecure or shy, then it may be a bit harder to find that connection because Clara’s story is based on this insecurity of her magic and herself. Her story is built on the solid support and love from her father, and how she’s desperate to fix it after accidentally placing a curse upon him. This story also features a plus-size main character, a hispanic character, and just the bundle of depression and anxiety that even the kindest of hearts can hold. This book was certainly a love-letter into healing oneself and finding oneself done in a way that could be reminiscent to Ghibli movies with its style and prose. But again, if you can’t really relate/see this and feel this, it’s a lot harder to enjoy the book.
The writing style wasn’t my favorite, but it was nice! It read a bit simpler, but I also wouldn’t entirely knock it down to middle grade/younger YA level just because of it. Again, this is a nice and easy read because it’s not so fleshed out and detailed, it makes it almost a comfort novel when you need a pick-me-up.

All in all, I can see how others weren’t entirely happy with ‘Flowerheart’. I think there was too much a standard held up to it to be just like Howl’s Moving Castle- or other Ghibli movies/inspired books in general that when it fell a little short, people were too critical against it. Catherine Bakewell delivers a beautiful novel about simply quelling that angry little voice in your head that likes to tell you doubts over and over. It’s a beautiful novel about friendship, parental love, and just feeling comfortable in one’s own skin! I totally accidentally skipped over the content warnings for this book though, but that was entirely a self-fault. The book in its entirety beyond that little scene that threw me off was like finding acceptance and self- it’s not too often that plus-sized main characters are featured in fantasy novels so it was certainly a taste of home that made me love this book all the more.
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