[review on request]
THE SECRET GARDEN
FIRST PRINTED - 1911
AUTHOR - Frances Hodgson Burnett
BEST-SELLERS - A Little Princess ; Little Lord Flauntleroy
SYNOPSIS - Mary is alone. Her parents are dead and no one remembers her. When she is found, she is sent back to England to her Uncle's place. There, in the Manor, she hunts for a hidden garden that no one has been to in the last 10 years. Slowly but surely, Mary's life is changing.
EXCERPT - She slept a long time, and when she awakened Mrs. Medlock had bought a lunchbasket at one of the stations and they had some chicken and cold beef and bread and butter and some hot tea. The rain seemed to be streaming down more heavily than ever and everybody in the station wore wet and glistening waterproofs. The guard lighted the lamps in the carriage, and Mrs. Medlock cheered up very much over her tea and chicken and beef. She ate a great deal and afterward fell asleep herself, and Mary sat and stared at her and watched her fine bonnet slip on one side until she herself fell asleep once more in the corner of the carriage, lulled by the splashing of the rain against the
windows.
BEST-SELLERS - A Little Princess ; Little Lord Flauntleroy
SYNOPSIS - Mary is alone. Her parents are dead and no one remembers her. When she is found, she is sent back to England to her Uncle's place. There, in the Manor, she hunts for a hidden garden that no one has been to in the last 10 years. Slowly but surely, Mary's life is changing.
EXCERPT - She slept a long time, and when she awakened Mrs. Medlock had bought a lunchbasket at one of the stations and they had some chicken and cold beef and bread and butter and some hot tea. The rain seemed to be streaming down more heavily than ever and everybody in the station wore wet and glistening waterproofs. The guard lighted the lamps in the carriage, and Mrs. Medlock cheered up very much over her tea and chicken and beef. She ate a great deal and afterward fell asleep herself, and Mary sat and stared at her and watched her fine bonnet slip on one side until she herself fell asleep once more in the corner of the carriage, lulled by the splashing of the rain against the
windows.
It was quite dark when she awakened again. The train had stopped at a station and Mrs.Medlock was shaking her.
FL Speaks - WHAT A BOOK!!!! I mean what a book!!! Introducing Mary, who was a British child of ten, living in India during the British Raj regime. Her description made me hate her. She was spoilt, surrounded by Indian servants. Yet there was something about her that made me pity her too. She was the only child and she was always sick. Her mother never had time for her and she was never allowed to meet othe people. During the Cholera breakout, most of the people living in the bungalow died, the rest of the servants ran off. No one remembered her, because she was hardly seen. Finally someone gets to her and sends her back to her uncle who lived in England.
Its from here onwards, that i started loving this book. England was new to Mary. The servants behaved differently and Mary realised that the customs were different than India. She had to learn to dress herself and tie her own shoes, as is expected from a lady. She started roaming around and the fresh air was good to her. Mrs Warden, the housekeeper told her of a garden that once belonged to her aunt was now locked by her uncle for the last 10 years. And being a child, it became her determintaion to find a way. She became close friends with on her maid's younger brother and they found the secret garden and they promised to make it alive again and keep it a secret.
Mary later finds out she has a cousin in the house who is always sick. Soon Mary and Colin's friendship grows much to the astonishment of the family staff. This is the story of Mary and Colin. This is a story of how life should be lived. I laughed out loud with those two, i felt their pain and their anguish. I believed in their spirit as they tried not to let obstacles stop them. A children's book. Yes, this is a children's book. Its amazing a children's book can tug at your heart. I spent all night reading this book and just couldn't let go. The little schemes they come up with, the play acting they did, the belief in themselves makes me want to go back to childhood.
There is something about children that draws magic. No i am not talking of voodoo or sorcery. Just call it Magic. Its this belief in something that changes Mary's life. Its this Magic that brings her to Colin.
THIS IS A MUST READ FOR EVERYONE. No its not written by Tolkien ot Rowling or Sheldon. Yes, its for kids. But no matter how old you are, if you are still a kid at heart, this book will take you back to those days. The story gets a bit repetitive at times and few of the pages will actually make u laugh in disbileif, but isn't that what the kid in you does. Believe in something. Believe in innocence. Believe in magic. We all need a reminder now and then. We all need A SECRET GARDEN now and then. In a long, long time, a book, actually made me cry.
My Rating - 5 out of 5. Nothing less.
FL Speaks - WHAT A BOOK!!!! I mean what a book!!! Introducing Mary, who was a British child of ten, living in India during the British Raj regime. Her description made me hate her. She was spoilt, surrounded by Indian servants. Yet there was something about her that made me pity her too. She was the only child and she was always sick. Her mother never had time for her and she was never allowed to meet othe people. During the Cholera breakout, most of the people living in the bungalow died, the rest of the servants ran off. No one remembered her, because she was hardly seen. Finally someone gets to her and sends her back to her uncle who lived in England.
Its from here onwards, that i started loving this book. England was new to Mary. The servants behaved differently and Mary realised that the customs were different than India. She had to learn to dress herself and tie her own shoes, as is expected from a lady. She started roaming around and the fresh air was good to her. Mrs Warden, the housekeeper told her of a garden that once belonged to her aunt was now locked by her uncle for the last 10 years. And being a child, it became her determintaion to find a way. She became close friends with on her maid's younger brother and they found the secret garden and they promised to make it alive again and keep it a secret.
Mary later finds out she has a cousin in the house who is always sick. Soon Mary and Colin's friendship grows much to the astonishment of the family staff. This is the story of Mary and Colin. This is a story of how life should be lived. I laughed out loud with those two, i felt their pain and their anguish. I believed in their spirit as they tried not to let obstacles stop them. A children's book. Yes, this is a children's book. Its amazing a children's book can tug at your heart. I spent all night reading this book and just couldn't let go. The little schemes they come up with, the play acting they did, the belief in themselves makes me want to go back to childhood.
There is something about children that draws magic. No i am not talking of voodoo or sorcery. Just call it Magic. Its this belief in something that changes Mary's life. Its this Magic that brings her to Colin.
THIS IS A MUST READ FOR EVERYONE. No its not written by Tolkien ot Rowling or Sheldon. Yes, its for kids. But no matter how old you are, if you are still a kid at heart, this book will take you back to those days. The story gets a bit repetitive at times and few of the pages will actually make u laugh in disbileif, but isn't that what the kid in you does. Believe in something. Believe in innocence. Believe in magic. We all need a reminder now and then. We all need A SECRET GARDEN now and then. In a long, long time, a book, actually made me cry.
My Rating - 5 out of 5. Nothing less.
PRICE - INR 99/- by Penguin
E-Book Link - The Secret Garden
P.S| I don't know how to thank you SMITA for asking us to review this book. Thank you.
WOW!
ReplyDeleteI just couldn't believe my eyes when I saw the review! A lot of pages admins are all amazing ':) :)
The comment, "WHAT A BOOK",did scare me in the first but after reading the part where you call it a children book to be a must read for everyone,I was left dumb,just gazing at the screen :p
Loved the lovely and quick review :)
I now won't believe in people who say I read rubbish :p :p
Thank you freeelancer.
thank you A lot of pages :)
This is one wonderful book to read.. I read it long back when I was in school.. You said it right that there is a kid in all of us who should explore the secret garden!
ReplyDeleteI felt going back to the time when I read this book, Mary who gets the air that suits her, skips and eats better.. So content it felt to read it then... and the emotions attached to the book are simply so innocent, so touching.. I love such books!
@SMITA
ReplyDeletewe try our best to deliver in time. Also we are new, so the energy and eagerness is alive. Most importantly, all the admins and the authors and readers here love books. They are like our best friends.
And yeah, do not believe in people who say u read rubbish. Once upon a time i was addicted to Goosebumps. Though it seems funny now, but that time, they meant the world to me.
Read what u get, read with your heart. And if you are confused, we are here to guide you
@Maithili
ReplyDeleteyou know, i am actually going back to read those wonderful books once in a while. God knows i need the innocence back.