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4.06 AVERAGE
4.06 AVERAGE
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
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:
Complicated
I really wasn’t too sold on this at first but I ended up absolutely loving it
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
relaxing
sad
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
The Secret Garden was an interesting read that, I think, gains much of its value in retrospect. While reading, I was more focused on the story and plot, which at times felt a bit slow, especially since I’m not the most outdoorsy person and don’t know much about flowers. But looking back, I really appreciate the symbolism woven throughout the book. There’s a lot to unpack, and I’m sure I didn’t catch everything, but I especially enjoyed the recurring metaphors of growth, such as the changing seasons and, of course, the Secret Garden itself. I also appreciated the way the book touched on mental health. Colin's entire journey, learning that most of his ailments were self-inflicted and that change starts from within, is a valuable lesson for a middle-grade audience as well as a good reminder for any other audience.
The characters were one of the biggest highlights for me. I liked them all, and despite how little background we get on each of them, they never felt overly dramatic or flat. In some ways, the story had a “slice of life” quality, where everyone has their own struggles, yet we only glimpse them through someone else’s perspective, most often a child’s. My favorite character was probably Lilias, even though she’s dead before the story begins and only mentioned occasionally. Her tragic fate and the lingering influence she has on so many characters was fascinating to read.
While I’m looking forward to exploring more of the metaphors and symbolism in this classic, it isn’t perfect. One thing that stood out was the repeated use of the word “queer.” At first, I had to look up its older meaning, “strange,” since it’s more widely recognized today for its LGBTQIA+ associations. Even knowing that, I still thought it was quite queer, in the “strange” sense, that it had to be repeated so often. Maybe there’s some deeper meaning to that choice that I missed, but from my minimal research, I couldn't find a good reason for that repetition.
I also have to deduct points for the racist undertones throughout the book. It’s mentioned repeatedly how negatively the Indian climate and culture supposedly affected Mary, as if England was the cure for her “bad” upbringing. Yes, Mary’s childhood was neglectful and loveless, but I don’t believe the climate, culture, or servants were to blame for that.
Lastly, I would’ve liked to see a bit more focus on Mary in the ending, since this is technically her book. That said, the ending was still sweet and satisfying overall.
In conclusion, The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett is a thoughtful, reflective read if you don’t mind a slower, less action-driven plot. It gets 4 stars from me.
|—TL;DR—|
Focus Genre: Middle Grade Classical Historical Fiction (Non-Romance)
Nostalgia: Disqualified
Personal Enjoyment: 3⭐
Plot: 2⭐
Characters: 5⭐
World-Building/Setting: 5⭐
- Historical Accuracy/Immersion: 5⭐
Writing: 4⭐
Themes/Message: 5⭐
Timelessness: 4⭐
Age-Appropriateness: 4⭐
Pacing: 4⭐
Ending: 4⭐
=Overall=
4,1-stars⭐ ≈ 4-stars⭐
~17/07/25~
Themes/Message: 5⭐
Timelessness: 4⭐
Age-Appropriateness: 4⭐
Pacing: 4⭐
Ending: 4⭐
=Overall=
4,1-stars⭐ ≈ 4-stars⭐
~17/07/25~
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Chronic illness, Racism
Moderate: Grief, Death of parent, Abandonment
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
emotional
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-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
I read this 100-year-old story to my daughters and we all were transported to Missselthwaite's secret garden. A lovely story.
Favorite passages:
One of the new things people began to find out in the last century was that thoughts—just mere thoughts—are as powerful as electric batteries—as good for one as sunlight is, or as bad for one as poison. To let a sad thought or a bad one get into your mind is as dangerous as letting a scarlet fever germ get into your body. If you let it stay there after it has got in you may never get over it as long as you live... surprising things can happen to any one who, when a disagreeable or discouraged thought comes into his mind, just has the sense to remember in time and push it out by putting in an agreeable determinedly courageous one. Two things cannot be in one place.
Where you tend a rose, my lad, a thistle cannot grow.
--
Sometimes since I've been in the garden I've looked up through the trees at the sky and I have had a strange feeling of being happy as if something was pushing and drawing in my chest and making me breathe fast. Magic is always pushing and drawing and making things out of nothing. Everything is made out of magic, leaves and trees, flowers and birds, badgers and foxes and squirrels and people. So it must be all around us. In this garden - in all the places.
--
The Secret Garden was what Mary called it when she was thinking of it. She liked the name, and she liked still more the feeling that when its beautiful old walls shut her in no one knew where she was. It seemed almost like being shut out of the world in some fairy place. The few books she had read and liked had been fairy-story books, and she had read of secret gardens in some of the stories. Sometimes people went to sleep in them for a hundred years, which she had thought must be rather stupid. She had no intention of going to sleep, and, in fact, she was becoming wider awake every day which passed at Misselthwaite.
Favorite passages:
One of the new things people began to find out in the last century was that thoughts—just mere thoughts—are as powerful as electric batteries—as good for one as sunlight is, or as bad for one as poison. To let a sad thought or a bad one get into your mind is as dangerous as letting a scarlet fever germ get into your body. If you let it stay there after it has got in you may never get over it as long as you live... surprising things can happen to any one who, when a disagreeable or discouraged thought comes into his mind, just has the sense to remember in time and push it out by putting in an agreeable determinedly courageous one. Two things cannot be in one place.
Where you tend a rose, my lad, a thistle cannot grow.
--
Sometimes since I've been in the garden I've looked up through the trees at the sky and I have had a strange feeling of being happy as if something was pushing and drawing in my chest and making me breathe fast. Magic is always pushing and drawing and making things out of nothing. Everything is made out of magic, leaves and trees, flowers and birds, badgers and foxes and squirrels and people. So it must be all around us. In this garden - in all the places.
--
The Secret Garden was what Mary called it when she was thinking of it. She liked the name, and she liked still more the feeling that when its beautiful old walls shut her in no one knew where she was. It seemed almost like being shut out of the world in some fairy place. The few books she had read and liked had been fairy-story books, and she had read of secret gardens in some of the stories. Sometimes people went to sleep in them for a hundred years, which she had thought must be rather stupid. She had no intention of going to sleep, and, in fact, she was becoming wider awake every day which passed at Misselthwaite.