,

S is for The Secret Garden

10:26:00 pm

A sullen, lonely, spoilt brat of a girl is suddenly orphaned and transported to a different country, to a house she's never heard of and among people she's never met. As ten year old Mary Lennox finds herself in an unfamiliar setting, she grows even more lonely and is driven to seek out unlikely friends among the outdoors. Her natural curiosity and general disregard for rules leads her to a place that no one has been in for ten years -  a secret garden!


This book by Frances Hodgson Burnett is a lovely example of manifesting what you want, getting things done and influencing other people. In short, it's the perfect self help book, long before the genre became popular! Mary and her friends put their faith completely in the 'Magic', which they believe is responsible for all the wonderful things happening to them. They also realize that for the Magic to work, you need to control your thoughts first. As Colin says, there is something called the wrong kind of magic, that can pull you back and hinder your progress.


Besides Magic, the one theme running throughout the book is nature. The birds, the flowers, the animals - everything seems to be part of a great big whole, moving in tandem rather than fighting each other. Nature is seen as a provider and a healer - of hurts both physical and mental. Burnett's descriptions are such that you can almost see the golden sun rise, or smell the wet earth. When the children are inside the garden, you can almost feel like you're in there with them, enclosed by tall walls covered with ivy.

I remember reading this book as a kid, but re-reading it recently has made me love it even more. This is one of those books that makes you think about something different every time you read it. It talks about deep subjects, but in such a light, lovely way that even a child can understand. An evergreen classic if ever there was one!


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10 comments

  1. I do have a copy of this book and I think I read it ages ago. Can't completely recall it but reading your review has made me think to go back and read again.


    Ravanhatha-a unique musical instrument from Rajasthan

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    1. Oh you must read it - I guarantee you'll love it!

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  2. I should re-read this one, it's been a long time since I first read the book. Lovely quotes.

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    1. Do read it, Rajlakshmi - you'll appreciate it even more now!

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  3. Oh I have heard about this book many times, but never read it. I will definitely look it up now. Thanks for sharing.

    Also, very glad to discover your blog through Write Tribe. Looking forward to reading more.

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    1. Thank you for stopping by, Shanaya! And do read the book - you'll love it!

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  4. I've read this book a few times. Now that I have a gardening business and I rehabilitate other people's gardens, I think that I will re-read it. Speaking of secret, magical gardens, have you seen the movie, "The Secret of Roan Inish"? I think that you would enjoy it.

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    1. Just looked up The Secret of Roan Inish and it sounds like a great movie! Got to find a way to watch it now!

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  5. I've not read this book in many, many years. I just downloaded it to my Kindle. Alana ramblinwitham.blogspot.com

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    1. That's exactly what I did with Frankenstein and Heidi too, as I was writing for F and H in the series! You'll love it - I'm sure!

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