Weekends with the Sunshine Gardening Society

Book excerpt: Noosa Heads, 1987: Newly divorced Cynthia has returned to her home town from Los Angeles to reconnect with her 19-year-old daughter, who is pregnant and determined not to listen to her mother's advice. Cynthia's former best friend, Lorraine, has been stuck mowing lawns as part of a business she shares with her husband - his dream, not hers. When Cynthia convinces Lorraine to join the local Sunshine Gardening Society, they meet young widow Elizabeth, and rootless, heartbroken Kathy. The four women soon discover the society is much more than an opportunity to chat about flowers. Rather, it offers them the chance to lend a helping hand to people whose lives need a bit of care and attention right along with their gardens. Between pulling up weeds and planting natives, the women learn from each other that some roots go deep, and others shallow; that seeds can lie dormant for a long time before they spring to life, and that careful tending is the key to lives and friendships that reach their full potential. Praise for Sophie Green: 'This is a warm treat of a novel, filled with great music and small-town charm' WEEKEND AUSTRALIAN 'Atmospheric and incredibly descriptive, reading a Sophie Green book is the greatest escape' WHO 'A tender, heartwarming read' NEW IDEA 'Reading this book was like snuggling beneath a warm beach towel after a bracing dip in the ocean' JOANNA NELL 'Heartwarming, fulfilling and Australian as a lamb roast and full-bodied shiraz' THE AUSTRALIAN WOMEN'S WEEKLY