Greenwild

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.

As Daisy and Leila peruse Kew Gardens, Leila shares her botanical knowledge. Daisy thinks she sees the plants reacting to her mother’s touch, but she dismisses this impression despite her knowledge that plants always “behave in strange ways” (18) around Leila. Suddenly, Daisy spots a black-and-white kitten, but when she calls out for her mother, the cat disappears.

Later, Daisy is alarmed when her mother abruptly suggests that Daisy attend boarding school. Leila’s next assignment will take her to the Amazon, where she will investigate the disappearances of people who protest illegal logging, mining, and fishing. Daisy worries about Leila’s safety, but Leila insists on sending her to Wykhurst Boarding School, which Craven recommended. Though Leila reassures her daughter that she will be fine, she gives Daisy a glass paperweight with a dandelion inside, telling her that if something goes wrong, Daisy is to bring the paperweight to Kew Gardens. The paperweight once belonged to Daisy’s father, and Leila warns her to keep it a secret. If Daisy follows these instructions, Leila promises that “help will come” (25) to her.

Daisy packs for Wykhurst, using her late father’s suitcase. She admires the sticker that marked her English father’s first trip to Iran, where he met Leila. Leila is disappointed that her daughter is not permitted to have a cell phone at the school, as this would have enabled them to keep in touch.

At Wykhurst, the matron, Mrs. Daggler, gives Daisy an ill-fitting uniform and takes away her red hair ribbon, which was a gift from Leila. When Daisy unpacks in her dormitory, she is surprised to find the cat she saw at Kew Gardens sitting in her suitcase.

During her first day at school, Daisy struggles to hide the kitten, who insists on remaining at her side. She names him Napoleon. The other girls bully Daisy, mocking her uniform.

Daisy struggles over the next weeks, with only Napoleon for company. She also misses her mother intensely. On one occasion, Mrs. Daggler uses racist language to express her disapproval of Leila. Mired in this unfriendly environment, Daisy thinks longingly of the many adventures that she and her mother have shared. She also reflects on the pain of losing her father, who died in a car crash when Daisy was three. After his death, Daisy and Leila have traveled together ever since.

Daisy receives regular postcards from Leila, using them to count down the days until the end of the term, when her mother plans to return for her. However, when that longed-for day arrives, Leila does not appear at the train station; instead, Miss Peckmore, a Wykhurst house mistress, brings Daisy back to the dormitory. There, Mrs. Daggler callously reports that Leila “has been reported missing, presumed dead” (45) after her plane went down in the Amazon.

That night, Daisy looks at pictures of herself and her mother, certain that Leila is still alive. She has only one picture of her father; in that photograph, Leila also appears and is wearing the daisy pendant. In her things, Daisy finds an envelope on which her mother has written, “For use only in emergencies” (49). Inside is a single seed. Daisy falls asleep holding it and wishing for aid; she does not notice that the seed flares with light. When she wakes the next morning, she is determined to find her mother.

Daisy sneaks into Matron Daggler’s office after dark to research her mother’s disappearance. An article reports that Leila has gone missing, along with Willem Oaksure, a photographer; Sebastien Carlos, a translator; and Calla Walker, the pilot. Daisy is startled by a sudden unexplained sound, but the office contains nothing but several “putrid” plants. Despite the article’s pessimism, Daisy remains convinced that Leila is still alive.

The new term begins, but Daisy remains friendless and spends her time only with Napoleon. One day, she finds Matron going through her things and damaging them. Napoleon finds a paper that has fallen from Matron’s pocket; it orders her to “have the Thistledown girl ready” (55) late on Tuesday night. Later, Daisy overhears a man she recognizes from Kew Gardens asking Matron about Daisy’s paperweight.

Determined to leave, Daisy quickly packs a backpack with her essentials, but she is disappointed to realize that she cannot take her father’s suitcase with her. She sneaks out of the school grounds and takes a train to London. On her way to Kew Gardens, she spots Mr. Craven. She initially approaches him, but then she overhears him talking about apprehending her. Craven cryptically states that after he has caught Daisy, “Mallowmarsh will be finished” (59). She picks Craven’s pocket and finds Leila’s daisy necklace, which Leila never removes. Suddenly, Craven spots Daisy, who quickly flees.

Daisy evades Craven and “the fox-haired man” (63) whom she saw first at Kew Gardens and then at Wykhurst. She dashes through a revolving door and then watches in astonishment as ivy quickly spreads across it out of nowhere, blocking Craven from using the door. Daisy runs for the river Thames and jumps onto a barge, where she hides. Napoleon joins her after helping to distract the fox-haired man. She rides the barge until it approaches Kew Gardens, and she then swims through the freezing water and hides, waiting for evening.

She enters Kew Gardens after dark and is surprised to see the dandelion paperweight glowing. It shines a beam that directs her “like a compass point” (68). She suddenly hears Craven and the fox-haired man nearby; they almost catch her, but the paperweight flares, temporarily blinding them so that she can escape.