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jregensburger's review against another edition
5.0
I think this one's destined to be a classic.
Also, it'll make you love nature in ways Thoreau could only dream of.
Also, it'll make you love nature in ways Thoreau could only dream of.
lyfisgrand's review against another edition
5.0
This, like many classics, didn't age well. Lots of overt racism so if you're reading it aloud to your children be aware it will require some explaining or editing on the fly.
Barring that unfortunate truth about many, many, old books, this is still one of my favourite old stories.
Barring that unfortunate truth about many, many, old books, this is still one of my favourite old stories.
kat_rose's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
judip53's review against another edition
5.0
Probably my favorite book of all time. I read it in 4th grade and have read it many times since.
eimearc's review against another edition
4.0
A childhood favourite that I decided to revisit. Mary's parents are dead and she is sent from India to England, where she must learn to adjust to life in her Uncle's mysterious manor.
This book enchanted me as a child and again as an adult. The characters are wonderfully written and it is a pleasure to follow them throughout the book. The story itself is a very human one, resilience, growth and the simple beauty of having a space to grow (both literally and metaphorically).
This book enchanted me as a child and again as an adult. The characters are wonderfully written and it is a pleasure to follow them throughout the book. The story itself is a very human one, resilience, growth and the simple beauty of having a space to grow (both literally and metaphorically).
hey_mari's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
authorcagray's review against another edition
4.0
As a naturopathic doctor, this book fascinates me, because while it pretends to be a children's story. it's really more of a morality tale on the power of the mind (and nature, laughter, and good spirits) to heal the body.
The story follows Mary, a sullen and disagreeable little girl who was orphaned and grew up always getting her own way. She goes to live at Mistlethwaite Manor, where she gradually meets servants who don't let her boss them around and learns to care about people other than just herself. She hears the legend of a secret garden, which was shut up after the master of the house's wife died. The wife had loved the garden, and he couldn't stand to look at it because it made him too sad -- or so everyone assumed. It becomes Mary's mission to find the garden, and then to revive it to a state of health.
Eventually, Mary stumbles upon a great secret, well kept by the servants, though: the master has a son named Colin, a sickly and cross little boy her own age who is nearly as monstrous as she was herself, when she came to live there. But we come to learn over time that he is that way because he has been told all his life that he is going to die, and everybody felt sorry for him, so nobody had the heart to deny him anything. He therefore acts like a "rajah" of India, and spends all his time dwelling on how decrepit and miserable he is. But when he meets Mary, suddenly he has his own awakening. And then when he learns of the garden, he has something to live for and look forward to. Presently (spoiler alert), Colin decides that there is magic in the world by which he can get better if he just makes up his mind to do it--and do it he does.
I'm sure kids enjoy the book, but it might also be a good read for someone convalescing from a long or chronic illness.
The story follows Mary, a sullen and disagreeable little girl who was orphaned and grew up always getting her own way. She goes to live at Mistlethwaite Manor, where she gradually meets servants who don't let her boss them around and learns to care about people other than just herself. She hears the legend of a secret garden, which was shut up after the master of the house's wife died. The wife had loved the garden, and he couldn't stand to look at it because it made him too sad -- or so everyone assumed. It becomes Mary's mission to find the garden, and then to revive it to a state of health.
Eventually, Mary stumbles upon a great secret, well kept by the servants, though: the master has a son named Colin, a sickly and cross little boy her own age who is nearly as monstrous as she was herself, when she came to live there. But we come to learn over time that he is that way because he has been told all his life that he is going to die, and everybody felt sorry for him, so nobody had the heart to deny him anything. He therefore acts like a "rajah" of India, and spends all his time dwelling on how decrepit and miserable he is. But when he meets Mary, suddenly he has his own awakening. And then when he learns of the garden, he has something to live for and look forward to. Presently (spoiler alert), Colin decides that there is magic in the world by which he can get better if he just makes up his mind to do it--and do it he does.
I'm sure kids enjoy the book, but it might also be a good read for someone convalescing from a long or chronic illness.
squid_vicious's review against another edition
5.0
I love children’s books that don’t underestimate children. I confess that I didn’t read many children’s books when I was a child myself, because a lot of the stuff I could get my hands on seemed asinine and too easy. There is an entire collection of lovely books published by the Courte Échelle publishing house that my mother bought me: they all took me a couple of hours to read at the most and then I never touched them again. I went and stole books for her shelves instead, which may or may not have been a good thing…
I only started getting interested in children’s books in my late twenties. Weird, huh? I had seen the Merchant-Ivory movie adaptation of “The Secret Garden” when I was a teen, and while I would have never admitted it then, I was fascinated by it. Not to get into details, but the themes of abandonment and parents who are emotionally unavailable that we see time and times again in British children literature hit awfully close to home. Watching “The Secret Garden” was the movie equivalent of cutting: it hurt, but I needed it to hurt. I eventually worked up the courage to get a copy of the book.
Of course it is predictable. Of course the characters of Mary and Colin are spoiled little brats – aristocratic British kids, for god’s sake! Of course the resolution is healing. Of course the morals of the story (love is important, nature should be cared for, working on one’s self will make us better people) are big no-brainers. But the writing is so beautiful and evocative. I felt for the children, I could taste their anger and their loneliness. I knew why they were mean and bossy. They were cold because they had never known warmth. And enters the metaphor of the garden.
When Mary first steps into the garden, she is afraid it is dead because there are no leaves or blooms. She soon realizes that with a little care and the change of season, it can be just as glorious and lush as it was in her aunt’s days. It is very, very obvious that the garden is Mary’s heart: not really dead, but in serious need of caring. And if someone who knows how to pull the weeds to make room for the flowers can make the garden beautiful again, a heart can be mended and a person can be made whole and happy again. Once the garden is alive again, she brings Colin in and he eventually gets better too.
“The Secret Garden” made me smile and cry, and it inspired me to work on myself, to make peace with a lot of bad things and to use these bad things as a base from which I could grow to be a stronger and happier person. It helped me get out of my shell, and let my colors shine brighter than they ever had before. I am not sure that Frances Hodgson Burnett meant for her novel to be a lifeline to a lonely girl in Canada, over a hundred years after she wrote it, but I am very grateful for this gorgeous book. I recommend it to everyone.
I only started getting interested in children’s books in my late twenties. Weird, huh? I had seen the Merchant-Ivory movie adaptation of “The Secret Garden” when I was a teen, and while I would have never admitted it then, I was fascinated by it. Not to get into details, but the themes of abandonment and parents who are emotionally unavailable that we see time and times again in British children literature hit awfully close to home. Watching “The Secret Garden” was the movie equivalent of cutting: it hurt, but I needed it to hurt. I eventually worked up the courage to get a copy of the book.
Of course it is predictable. Of course the characters of Mary and Colin are spoiled little brats – aristocratic British kids, for god’s sake! Of course the resolution is healing. Of course the morals of the story (love is important, nature should be cared for, working on one’s self will make us better people) are big no-brainers. But the writing is so beautiful and evocative. I felt for the children, I could taste their anger and their loneliness. I knew why they were mean and bossy. They were cold because they had never known warmth. And enters the metaphor of the garden.
When Mary first steps into the garden, she is afraid it is dead because there are no leaves or blooms. She soon realizes that with a little care and the change of season, it can be just as glorious and lush as it was in her aunt’s days. It is very, very obvious that the garden is Mary’s heart: not really dead, but in serious need of caring. And if someone who knows how to pull the weeds to make room for the flowers can make the garden beautiful again, a heart can be mended and a person can be made whole and happy again. Once the garden is alive again, she brings Colin in and he eventually gets better too.
“The Secret Garden” made me smile and cry, and it inspired me to work on myself, to make peace with a lot of bad things and to use these bad things as a base from which I could grow to be a stronger and happier person. It helped me get out of my shell, and let my colors shine brighter than they ever had before. I am not sure that Frances Hodgson Burnett meant for her novel to be a lifeline to a lonely girl in Canada, over a hundred years after she wrote it, but I am very grateful for this gorgeous book. I recommend it to everyone.