The Secret Book of Flora Lea

Stories are at the heart of The Secret Book of Flora Lea, even being referenced directly in the title. In the closing Author’s Note, Patti Callahan Henry says, “This is the start of The Secret Book of Flora Lea, a reminder that we are a myth-making people; it is how we make meaning of the meaningless and sense of the senseless. It is why we tell stories” (347). In other words, this theme took shape for the author before the book was even written, and Hazel and Flora’s story evolved around it.

Even before the Linden girls are evacuated from their home by Operation Pied Piper (itself a not-so-subtle reference to a traditional storytelling motif), Hazel uses stories to make sense of the world around her. She clearly has a deep love for literature that she carries through her entire life, eventually leading her to work at a rare bookshop that specializes in the extraordinary. As a child forced into a maternal role that she isn’t adequately prepared for, Hazel finds strength in stories: “This was the answer to Flora’s distress and sleepless nights, her startling at every noise and siren—stories. This was how to get through the fear” (15). Although it feels like a small thing against an incomprehensibly dark time, Hazel recognizes storytelling as the one power she has at her disposal.