Frances Hodgson Burnett writes a classic tale of a young girl by the name of Mary. Our protagonist is half Indian, half British and has lived her life in India’s high society. At first, I found her to be a very unlikeable character though I remind myself she is a child and cannot be the one to blame as she was spoiled in everything but attention.

I haven’t read many classic stories but from what I have read, they all seem to follow the same style. They all take some time to get to the meat of the story and instead focus a lot on the setting and the characters. For this particular story I enjoyed this aspect because it gave Mary a lot of time to grow up and get some great character development. She really seemed to bloom at Misselthwaite Manor.

Dickon is the MVP and my favorite character.

Aside from the compelling imagery Burnett provides, I believe The Secret Garden is a metaphor for our own emotions and needs. In order to tend to others, we need to tend to ourselves and make sure we are not just physically healthy, but mentally as well.

I gave this book 4 stars on Goodreads.