Book in Focus: Mr. Marshal's Flower Book

Florilegium: A collection of literary extracts. A word I dare not pronounce and know not how to spell without the help of a dictionary.

My whole Sunday was spent lazing between waiting for last two episodes of most probably my the most favourite Korean Romantic Comedy and the pages of this flower florilegium.

Nothing many remains about the author Mr. Alexander Marshal's life in the pages of history. He was a flower enthusiast, amazing painter and chronicler of gardens. He had a wife, no children, was friends with few nobles and loved illustrating. His only flower florilegium has been passed down through many owners to finally make its home in the Queen's library.

A book most probably many wouldn't get to see because it's so delicate and beautiful and old, that it may crumble if left to mere hands. This book is a reproduction of those beautiful flower art. Now made available for mere mortals who are flower crazy, a book definitely suitable for my flora fauna manic mother. So vibrant and detailed that you want to keep starting at the pages all day. The illustrations are divided according to the English seasons, with tiny introduction and information about the gardening practices in late 1700s.

There is a reproduction of a letter by Marshal about paints and his love for flowers to a friend. It was interesting to see how language has evolved over the centuries, we no longer write satisfie but satisfy. The typeface and the page arrangements is gorgeous.

Sadly the book is not mine, my nature enthusiast boss owns lovely copies of botanicals from around the world. I just helped myself for the weekend.

While a friend called me yesterday on Skype, I gladly showed her the book, the question she put to me was, who buys these books?

True, these books are expensive to produce and will never be considered a rising contender in the bestseller lists. Not many can afford such expensive books either. But the answer was given by the Korean Drama I was waiting for: We have to publish these books that we know will never earn profit, but they need to be published because they have something in them for that one individual who will cherish it and preserve it.

This book is definitely meant to be cherished and loved.