It was the sweetest, most mysterious-looking place any one could imagine. The high walls which shut it in were covered with the leafless stems of climbing roses which were so thick that they were matted together.
The Secret Garden
by Frances Hodgson Burnett (1911)
From the publisher: Frances Hodgson Burnett’s beloved classic tells the
story of Mary Lennox, a spoiled orphan who leaves India to live with
her cold uncle in his dreary mansion in England. When Mary hears of a
secret garden kept locked for ten years, she is determined to find it
and tend it back to life. With the help of her uncle’s sickly son and a
boy who knows all about nature, Mary secretly transforms the garden –
and all of their lives.
Notes:
- Audiobook: The audio version on Libby is abridged/full cast. It is unabridged online in audiobook at Librivox (free to all). Also available on hoopla (unabridged is 8 hours or so).
- Full text as e-book at Project Gutenberg
- HTL has the book, the 1993 film on DVD, a recent graphic novel adaptation, and audiobook CDs, as well as an abridged book for children. Right now, we also have lots of extra copies of the book and a Large Print copy to borrow.
Resources:
- A biographical sketch of Burnett at Literary Ladies Guide.
- Discussion questions from Victoria Magazine
- Reader's Guide at Penguin RandomHouse
Keep reading:
- A Little Princess, Burnett's other children's classic, does hold up (in my opinion)
- "My Robin" is an essay Burnett wrote about a robin she "knew" in real life in the gardens at Maytham Hall (full text online).
Go beyond:
- If you find yourself in NYC, check out the Burnett Fountain in Central Park.
- Visit (or visit virtually) the garden in England that inspired the secret garden in the book: Great Maytham Hall in Kent. More history of that site here.
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