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The Garden of Small Beginnings
Fiction
Penguin
2017
Kindle, Paperback, Audiobook
368
"Young widow Lilian Girvan can't see the garden for the weeds... It's been three years since her husband was killed in a car accident and Lilian is still getting used to being sane--after that one early breakdown. She's happy just being able to get her two girls to school every morning, keep her illustrating job, and catch up on her favorite TV shows with her sister. She's not exactly in a rut; she's just letting the grass grow under her feet. But then Lilian's boss asks her to illustrate a vegetable encyclopedia and signs her up for a vegetable-gardening class. Lilian reluctantly agrees and recruits her kids and sister to join her for some drama-free Saturday mornings, because what could be more relaxing than gardening? Nothing...except that this class is filled with people who like to dig a little deeper than the surface, and an instructor who makes Lillian want to bloom for the first time in years. With her fellow newbie gardeners, Lilian learns what it takes to nurture plants--and friendships. Digging in the dirt, with worms and all, teaches Lilian that sometimes you have to let nature take its course, be it in gardening, in life, or in love.."--
Grief, Gardening, and Great Humor! 
To be honest, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect when I read the synopsis for this book.
I’ve read books that have dealt with the grief process, how to books on gardening, and light, entertaining books full of great wit and snarky dialogue. But the thought of all these things put together in a coherent, entertaining format seemed a little far-fetched.
A plant needs three different things to grow; seeds, soil, and food (ie sunlight and water). Combined, these three seemingly different materials can produce amazingly beautiful plants. 
Sometimes an author is also able to take seemingly different topics and produce a truly wonderful piece. This is the case with The Garden of Small Beginnings. Abbi uses the story of Lillian, a young widow of two small children who is working through the grief of witnessing the tragic death of her husband in a car accident, as the seed planted in the premise of learning to grow a garden. She then waters the plot with a healthy amount of wit and humor to produce an amazingly entertaining and thought-provoking story.
Little did I know that when I started reading this book that it would provide inspiration and encouragement for me personally. Shortly after beginning the story my oldest son’s high school teammate and friend was killed suddenly in a car accident. Abbi’s wonderfully, witty lines and clever analogies were the shot of humor and encouragement I needed on more than one occasion as I personally dealt with the shock of this young man’s death and the pain of my friend’s grief over losing her child. I truly believe that I was given this review as a gift from God. 
Whether you are dealing with your own grief or just looking for a great story, The Garden of Small Beginnings is worth reading!
Tanya’s love for books has been a lifelong passion that she likes sharing with others. Reading is also the thing that relaxes her after a day of juggling the many responsibilities that come with being being wife to an amazing man, mother to four great kids spread around the world, business manager, and farm hand on their place in southwest Missouri; home to Akaushi cattle and a menagerie of pygmy goats, horses, chickens, dogs and cats.
