Greenwild

Daisy Thistledown races through a sandstorm, following her mother’s lead through the chaos. She sees her mother, Leila, magically conjure a sphere of white orchids, but when Daisy looks again, the flowers are gone. Her mother dismisses what Daisy saw, claiming that her daughter merely has an overactive imagination.

Six months later, 11-year-old Daisy and her mother pause their nomadic lifestyle to meet with Leila Thistledown’s editor, Mr. Craven, in London. He notes Leila’s unusual daisy pendant, which Leila dismissively labels a mere trinket. Uninterested in the adults’ conversation, Daisy reads a book and reflects that her talent at waiting has been developed by a lifetime of following her mother around as Leila “travel[s] all over the world chasing stories” (12). Daisy finds her mother’s career impressive and likes being her sidekick. However, she frets that she is unlike her mother, and she does not see herself as brave. As Craven and Leila’s meeting ends, Craven drops a detailed map of Peru. When Daisy picks it up, he snatches it away from her. Leila and Daisy go to Kew Gardens; on the way, Daisy admires the parakeets that she spots all over London.