Review: The Sunflower Girl by Rosanna Chiofalo

In the fields around Tuscany in summertime, sunflowers grow in profusion—wave upon wave of gold and green standing tall against the Italian sky. But for Signora Maria Ferraro, the bright yellow blooms carry only bitter memories. Though she loved them as a child, sunflowers have come to represent the most painful episode of her life. Not even her cherished daughter, Anabella, knows what happened to her during World War II, when the Germans overran her hometown of Florence and Signora Ferraro fell in love with a Resistance fighter. In the aftermath of loss and grief she found salvation through an unlikely source—cultivating roses on her farm in the Tuscan countryside. Now the blossoms symbolize everything that is both good and safe, and she nurtures them with as much care as she guards her past.

Yet to Anabella, the rose farm that once delighted her has become little more than a pretty prison. Despite her beautiful surroundings, Anabella longs for more. During one of her regular visits to Siena to sell their flowers, Anabella encounters a handsome young artist named Dante Galletti. His canvases are filled with images of a girl who looks just like Anabella—and Dante claims to have seen her in his dreams, running through a sunflower field. Through Dante, Anabella begins to see sunflowers, her cloistered existence, and the world itself through new eyes. As their relationship deepens, Anabella knows she will soon have to choose between loyalty to her mother, and the risks and rewards of living on her own terms.

Alternating between the viewpoints of both mother and daughter, and between Italy during World War II and a quarter-century later, The Sunflower Girl is a poignant and moving story of the choices we make in the name of love, and the secrets that echo through generations.

Kindle Edition

Expected publication: July 24th 2018 by Penguin Random House

Terri's Thoughts

I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.  Thank you!

I chose this story because there isn't a wartime story I can walk away from.  To add to that, I also discovered that I had previously read Chiofalo's work Rosalia's Bittersweet Pastry Shop and had loved it.  I just had to read this.

This story is written through two perspectives, Maria's during the occupation of Italy in WW11 and her daughters from childhood to adulthood.  Both stories equally interesting and eerily similar while being different at the same time if that makes sense.

As with most stories of this genre, it is filled with the things you would come to expect.  Tragic love stories, horrific events and a theme of perseverance. I struggled with the character of Maria and how overprotective she was of her daughter.  At times I just wanted to slap her however as the story progressed I was able to understand her and what drove her to be the person she was.

Having just finished the book only moments ago, I find myself reflecting and still feeling the story.  This is an indication of a good book in my world when you just can't shake it after completion.  I do know now that Chiofalo is an author I will actively seek out as after reading two of her books, I have yet to be let down.

About the Author

Rosanna Chiofalo is a first-generation Italian American whose parents emigrated from Sicily to New York in the early 1960s. She is the author of Bella Fortuna, Carissima, Stella Mia, Rosalia's Bittersweet Pastry Shop, and the novella "Seven Days of Christmas" which appears in the WHEN THE SNOW FALLS collection. She lives with her husband in New York City.

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