The Red Garden

The Red Garden is the latest offering from Alice Hoffman. She is probably most known for Practical Magic, which I never read nor saw the movie. But, this was one of the most recently published books on my library's "New Reads" shelf so I snapped it up. The Red Garden is a year-spanning story about a little town in Massachusetts from its founding days in the 1750s up through nearly present day. In the town of Blackwell is a garden that will only grow red things, no matter what color they are when you plant them. The garden, however, is really a story and more of a common thread to the stories of the citizens of Blackwell. This is comprised of a series of vignettes about these people and how their lives are woven together. It follows families through the years, stories that begin with one of the founders and up through their grandchildren and great grandchildren. I enjoyed The Red Garden for all of its sadness and sweetness. It was different than what I normally read and I liked that departure. The intertwined tales interested me a lot more than whatever "magic" made the garden's harvest red. That part wasn't so exciting for me. Try this if you're looking for something different. Not the fastest read but it's not terribly long either. Rating: * * *