47 pages • 1 hour read
Marta MolnarThe Secret Life of Sunflowers
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2022A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Chapters 1-8Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 1 Summary
Content Warning: This section of the guide describes and discusses the novel’s portrayal of mental illness, death by suicide, and sexual assault.
Emsley visits Violet Velar, her grandmother, in the assisted living facility where she has lived since her recent stroke. Violet, an artist and New York socialite, commiserates with Emsley over her cheating boyfriend, Trey. Emsley and Trey have opened a business, an auction house specializing in Hollywood charity events. She has sent Trey to an important meeting in her place for two reasons: First, she’s in New York, and second, she suspects that the potential client—a male politician—sees it as an opportunity to make sexual advances to her.
During the visit, Emsley and Violet speak to Emsley’s parents in Florida via a video call. Emsley’s mother, Anna, chastises her for ending the relationship with Trey and makes clear that she sees the business venture as unwise. When Violet reveals to them both that she has sold her home, Anna is angry.
As Emsley leaves, Violet gives her a box of old letters and a diary. Emsley, claiming she has space only for the diary, leaves the letters for her next visit. Expecting the diary to recount Violet’s youth, Emsley begins reading it on the plane, only to discover that Violet is not the author.
Chapter 2 Summary
The chapter is presented from Johanna’s point of view in 1887 in Amsterdam. She is 25, and her mother’s maid, Anka, divines whether she and her older sister, Mien, will have girls or boys after they marry. Their mother is excited for both of them to marry soon, but Johanna protests that she would rather do something more meaningful.
Their conversation is interrupted by a visit from Theo van Gogh, a friend of Johanna’s brother, Dries. Both men live in Paris and work in the art world. Initially, Johanna worries that he brings bad news of her brother, but she relaxes when Theo insists Dries is well. He asks permission to take Johanna on a walk, where he proposes marriage. Shocked, due to having spent time with Theo only twice, Johanna refuses. They walk back, and Johanna asks about Theo’s brother, Vincent, a painter who has also relocated to Paris. Before he leaves, Theo asks permission to write to Johanna, and she agrees.
Chapter 3 Summary
As soon as she returns to LA, Emsley rushes to work to prepare for an auction. Trey and his new girlfriend, Diya, also a partner in the company, both want to dissolve the business. Trey wants to shift to political polling, but Emsley wants to keep the focus on celebrity auctions. Emsley offers to buy their shares for what they invested, but Trey counters, offering to sell the company to Emsley for $1 million. He gives her 30 days to consider, and she agrees.
Emsley gives Violet a quick call as she walks to the auction. They joke and chat about Violet’s parenting style when Anna was young and allowed to roam free in museums. Emsley asks her who the diary belongs to. She has researched Johanna Bonger and wonders if she is related to Violet. Violet has always refused to reveal the identity of Anna’s father. Emsley speculates that she may be related to Vincent van Gogh.
Chapter 4 Summary
Johanna’s narrative resumes. It is 1888, and Johanna walks along a beach with her friend Anna, whose family is hosting her at their resort home. She has returned from Utrecht, where she attempted a teaching career but was unsuccessful. Anna teases her about Theo and about her love for Eduard, whom Johanna hopes will propose soon. Anna looks forward to her own upcoming marriage to an artist named Jan.
They return to the family’s home for lunch, and letters from Theo and Dries are waiting for Johanna. When Dries reveals that Theo has thrown himself into a bohemian lifestyle, Johanna worries. She and Anna debate whether one must be in love to get married. Anna urges her to pursue Theo, who has shown much more interest than Eduard, but Johanna insists she does not love Theo. Dries has invited her to go to Paris for Christmas, and Anna encourages her to do so.
Chapter 5 Summary
Emsley leads the auction—a fundraiser for a senator. She feels it is a success but knows she has a long way to go to raise the money to buy out Trey. She tells Trey and Diya that she plans to move out of the house the three share as soon as she can.
Early the next morning, Emsley’s mother, Anna, phones; Violet has had another stroke. Emsley rushes back to New York to find Violet unconscious. She talks with her while another resident, a man named Louis, enters. He confesses that he fears Violet’s stroke was due to their sneaking into the physical therapy hot tub at night. Louis plays his saxophone for Violet, and Emsley receives a call from Diya: She has sold her share of the company to Trey.
Emsley looks at the letters from Johanna to Clara—the same woman to whom the diary is addressed. Violet had promised to tell Emsley the story behind them once Emsley read the entire diary. Emsley finds an old painting, too, and wonders if Johanna could be the artist.
Chapter 6 Summary
In Paris, Johanna walks along Montmartre, hoping to bump into Theo so that she can inquire about her brother. She does, and Theo offers to show her some of the sights. He confesses that he has been busy with work and has neglected his friendship with Dries; the news reassures Johanna. Theo speaks of his brother, whom he worries is mentally unwell; Johanna admires the love he has for his brother. They bump into Claude Monet, an artist whose work Theo has been promoting. Monet praises Theo for his steadfast hard work, and Johanna begins to wonder if she could fall in love with him after all.
Chapter 7 Summary
Hoping her grandmother will regain consciousness, Emsley stays at Violet’s bedside, but she passes away. Emsley goes to Violet’s house to pack up her belongings for its sale. She speaks on the phone with Diya, who offers to run the upcoming auction for her. As Emsley wanders Violet’s home, she thinks about Johanna’s diary and wonders if she will ever discover its story without Violet to tell her.
Chapter 8 Summary
It is Christmas Eve, and Johanna and Theo are at the home of Dries and his wife, Anna. As they study a painting, Theo again proposes marriage, and this time Johanna accepts. She is excited, but Dries worries she does not love Theo the way she loved Eduard. Johanna assures him she does. Before they can celebrate, Theo receives a telegram that Vincent has had another mental health crisis. He leaves for Vincent’s home in Arles.
A few days pass, and Johanna receives a telegram from Theo explaining that his brother has been hospitalized with a fever after it was discovered that he cut off his ear. Dries discourages Johanna from marrying Theo because he’s fearful that Theo’s drinking indicates he may share Vincent’s mental illness. Johanna protests that Theo is an upstanding man.
Chapters 1-8 Analysis
The opening section of the novel presents many of its central themes, conflicts, and characters. Violet Velar is one of the first characters the reader meets, and her importance to protagonist Emsley Wilson is unmistakable. The two have a friendly rapport, joking back and forth with one another. Despite Violet’s age, she is feisty and upbeat. She supports Emsley, encourages Emsley in her endeavors, and provides a listening and sympathetic ear as Emsley shares her frustrations with the new relationship between her ex-boyfriend and friend. Likewise, Emsley adores her grandmother and respects her for being an outgoing and groundbreaking artist. Violet inspires Emsley as Emsley seeks to overcome the setbacks in her own business.
Emsley and her mother are foils, as are Johanna and her mother. Emsley’s mother, Anna, values appearance and reputation and believes Emsley should rely on sexuality to secure a relationship. It seems more important to her that her daughter be paired with an attractive man than that she have an enjoyable and successful career. Importantly, Violet is Emsley’s ally, and she defends Emsley’s choices. Similarly, Johanna Bonger longs for a life beyond what is expected of women in late-19th-century Europe. Her mother, however, desires for both Johanna and Johanna’s sister to put their energies toward finding a fiancé. Johanna argues that she hopes instead to do something meaningful with her life so that she will be remembered. In this way, both Emsley and Johanna are shaped by their cultures’ Gender Norms and Expectations for Women.
Emsley is captivated by Johanna’s story because she understands Johanna’s challenges. Johanna’s life is ordinary but soon becomes filled with drama as Theo van Gogh persists in his efforts to marry her. Johanna, however, not wanting to enter into a relationship with a man whom she does not love, responds cautiously and wisely. She cautiously pursues their friendship and, with time, discovers that she loves Theo. At a time when women do not always have the luxury of marrying for love, Johanna does not take their relationship for granted. She is aware that she is unconventional and has few domestic skills, but she seeks to support her husband, nonetheless. Theo likewise values Johanna for who she is and regards her as an equal. He shares his love of art and his passion for his work with her, and soon she shares his passions.
The conflict brought on by Vincent’s mental illness creates a rift between Johanna and her brother, Dries. Dries, seeking to protect Johanna, doesn’t want her to be endangered by marriage to someone who may be affected by the same mental illness that Vincent possesses. Johanna, however, is ruled by her love for her husband. It is apparent to her that Theo cares deeply for his brother, and Johanna supports Theo’s care for Vincent. In a sense, she regards Dries’s concerns as unwarranted and overbearing.
The mystery of Emsley’s family history figures prominently in the novel. Violet refuses to reveal the identity of her daughter, Anna’s, father. When Violet insists on giving the Dutch-written letters and journal to Emsley, Emsley wonders if they might contain information about her lineage. Her mother’s real name—Johanna—is the same as the author of the journal. Emsley speculates about her grandfather’s identity, wondering if he might have been Vincent van Gogh’s son. Because van Gogh engaged with sex workers, the stigma attached to such an offspring would be a possible reason for the secrecy.
Violet’s death significantly affects Emsley. Their close, lifelong bond has sustained Emsley throughout her life, and now she must cope with the grief that Violet’s death brings. Emsley, trying to keep her business afloat, now faces the dire situation of needing to raise $1 million in order to buy Trey’s shares. Whether she can do this while she is in New York dealing with her grandmother’s affairs propels the plot forward.
