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With Four Illustrations by MAURICE L. BOWER ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

A GREAT allegory!
If Pilgram's Progress is an allegory of Christianity then this story, The Lost Prince, is an allegory of the kingdom of God.

Jesus said "...seek first His kingdom and His righteousness..."

Throughout a 500 year exile from their homeland, successive generations of the king of Samavia have passed on the regal culture of their household by training their sons. They maintain their courtly attitudes, values and code of conduct even in the midst of very challenging socio-economic circumstances.

This narrative will provide parents with the tools they need to make abstract kingdom concepts explicit, and provide "teachable moments" to communicate kingdom context and vision for "everyday" living.This story can provide an illustration of how individuals and communities (families) can begin to adopt and uphold the culture of the "household" of God the Father.

"Thy kingdom come...on earth as it is in heaven."

Please read this book aloud and discuss it in groups...groups of family members, groups of seekers of the kingdom.

If you find this interesting you might also be interested in [...]

All boys should read this book or have it read to them.
Thoughtful and inspiring, this book is an excellent story for young boys. I can't wait to read it to mine. It is timeless and has such an example of how to behave without being preachy. You get just as excited as the young men following the story within its pages. Hope you will give it a try.

Fabulous old-fashioned book for young readers too
Wonderful reading and a good book to read to a child.Strong family relationships and strong characters with values worth discussing. ... Read more

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This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Little Princess lite
Reviewer : N,Seattle:The same basic heartwarming story as Little Princess with fewer details and some character changes.There is no Becky, father's friend is old and fat, different interactions with neighbor families.Same basic story.
Interesting to see the author's storyline in another version. ... Read more

Product Description
This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Product Description
This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

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A beautiful new edition of Frances Hodgson Burnett's classic novel. ... Read more

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Novel for children. According to Wikipedia: "Frances Hodgson Burnett, ( 1849 -1924) was an English–American playwright and author. She is best known for her children's stories, in particular The Secret Garden, A Little Princess, and Little Lord Fauntleroy. Born Frances Eliza Hodgson in Cheetham Hill, Manchester, her father died in 1854, and the family had to endure poverty and squalor in the Victorian slums of Manchester. Following the death of her mother in 1867, an 18-year-old Frances was now the head of a family of four younger siblings. She turned to writing to support them all, with a first story published in Godey's Lady's Book in 1868. Soon after she was being published regularly in Godey's, Scribner's Monthly, Peterson's Ladies' Magazine and Harper's Bazaar. Her main writing talent was combining realistic detail of working-class life with a romantic plot. Her first novel was published in 1877; That Lass o' Lowrie's was a story of Lancashire life. After moving with her husband to Washington, D.C., Burnett wrote the novels Haworth's (1879), Louisiana (1880), A Fair Barbarian (1881), and Through One Administration (1883), as well as a play, Esmeralda (1881), written with William Gillette...Her later works include Sara Crewe (1888) - later rewritten as A Little Princess (1905); The Lady of Quality (1896) - considered one of the best of her plays; and The Secret Garden (1909), the children's novel for which she is probably best known today. The Lost Prince was published in 1915..." ... Read more

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This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

The Shuttle
This was a fantastic book and a long one (I like that).I took it on a ski vacation and was tempted to take it to the slopes with me.I finally realized that was not a great idea but I could hardly wait to get back to my room, get comfortable, and begin reading again.

Rousingly Modern Topic
"The Shuttle* was written in the early 1900's, but it shows the brutality of spousal abuse--mental and physical--with no holds barred. Gentle Rosalie undergoes years of cruel emotional battering which is described with absolute psychological accuracy. It turns out that her sister Bettina is strong and determined enough to save both of them. Sir Nigel's end is satisfying, although it might have been even better if he'd fallen into the pigpen and been devoured by swine. This is a very early and powerful feminist novel as well as a skillfully written, entertaining page-turner.

A Wonderful ArtfullyTold Story!
I have a 1907 edition of this book that I love.. I've read it several times and each time I savour the language and the world that Frances Hodgeson Burnett described before the First World War: a world of English village streets with sound of carts clattering past hawthorn hedges and brash young American boys bicyling in buttonup boots and celluloid collars up the pleached alleys of country estates.
I think that the previous reviewer has unfortunetely missed much of the subtlety of the story, painting it in almost comicbook colours. It's "comfort reading" for adults who grew up making friends with Little Lord Fauntleroy and a Secret Garden. This is a novel that celebrates the goodness of people and cultures on both sides of the Atlantic in tender and funny ways that remind me of Lousia May Alcott's books and in the end, metes out justice in very satisfying ways. You might also want to see if you can find F H Burnett's "T. Tembarom" --which is, as her characters themselves might put it,a "bang-up" book as well.

An old-fashioned page turner
The book is set in the 19th century, but the heroine, Bettina Vanderpoel of the filthy rich New York Vanderpoels, is no shrinking violet. That role is left to her older sister, sweet and not overly bright Rosalie. The story starts out with Rosalie being courted by and married to Sir Nigel Anstruthers, an impoverished English aristocrat on the make for a rich wife. Although she is only eight at the time, Betty hates Sir Nigel. Her instincts are on the money. Sir Nigel is a rotter, a blackguard, a cad, and a bounder. He is utterly infuriated that he did not automatically gain control of Rosalie's money when he married her. He and his equally appalling mother start a loathsome campaign of emotional abuse that gentle Rosalie is not equal to. Luckily, by chapter five it is 12 years later and Bettina has grown into a fine, strong-minded woman who has all the business sense that made the Vanderpoel fortune. The rest of the book tells us how she rescues her sister, her nephew, and the Anstruthers estate from Sir Nigel. The hero of the book is another impoverished aristocrat, but cut from genuinely noble cloth, even if most of his ancestors were of the Sir Nigel type.
Before the book is over, Bettina will be trapped, injured, and at the mercy of Sir Nigel, who has Perfectly Awful plans for the lovely lady. Will Bettina wring her hands helplessly and beg?
Don't be silly.Read and see how love, virtue, and justice triumph and Sir Nigel gets his. ... Read more

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Frightened orphan Mary discovers the joyful wonders of life on the Yorkshire Moors with the help of two local boys and a mysterious, abandoned garden...where all things seem possible. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (24)

timeless.
The last time I read the Secret Garden I was young.... very young. So young, my young self thought that the London mentioned in stories must be the same as the one where my aunt lived ( in Ontario ); not that far out of reach. The Secret Garden had such an impact on my burgeoning imagination, that traveling to visit London Ontario, every beautiful Victorian farmhouse dotting the villages and hamlets leading to the city ( Arva, Lucan, Birr ) were all potential candidates for where the story took place. Don't try to tell my eight year old self that the Yorkshire moors are a far cry from Huron County farm country. I wouldn't believe you.


I cannot believe I waited this long to revisit the magic of one of the very first novels I remember reading. Yet, funnily, everything came back so easily it seemed as if it were one of my oldest friends. I loved reading of Dickon: the magic boy who could enchant the wildlife around him, of Mary the contrary miss who barked at the servant Martha but was still given ( by the same ) a skipping rope, and of Archibald Craven, the slightly deformed, Rochesterish lord of the manner, who came and went at will, who probably dressed wholly in black and who neglected his hypochondriac ghost-son named Colin---- so afraid of developing a lump to match his father's, Colin stayed in bed all day. Until Mary rescued him.....and a garden. At the same time.


Of course the rebirth motif is completely lost to a whipper-snapper, but Burnett weaves so well the awakening of the soul and the revitilization of the spirit with the sudden rekindling of the magic garden: locked after the death of its beautiful, timeless mistress. In fact, by the end, the garden and the boy Dickon seem so seamlessly intertwined, one wonders if Dickon actually existed. Is he instead a human metaphor for the liveliness the garden instills in those who tend it?


The reunion scene between the once-lame Colin who runs to his father, breathless and refreshed is very endearing.


I am glad I stumbled upon this again. Loved gushing over it with my friends and making them revisit it as well. I think it is one of the books that influenced a lot of children when they were young.

Fun For Young and Old
The Secret Garden is the story of Mary Lennox, a girl whose family dies in a cholera outbreak in India. She is a lonely brat, so when she is sent to live with her reclusive uncle in England, she has a hard time adjusting to the familiarity of the servants and the expectation that she can take care of herself. While wandering the gardens, she finds one that is locked up. Ben Weatherstaff, the gardener, warns her not to go poking around, that the garden was locked ten years before when the master's wife died there. Of course, the warning only makes Mary more curious, and she does what she can to make the garden hers. She soon discovers that the garden is tied into more than one family secret.

This book awakens a childlike sense in all who love it. It is mysterious and exciting, and the writing is very easy to be drawn into. Although she is described as an ugly girl with a selfish temperament, it is natural to like Mary and to wish for the best for her. Therefore, when she gets excited about the garden, so do we as readers, and when she is enraptured by Dickon and his Magic, so are we.

Luckily, there are several good movie adaptations, so I recommend watching one after completing the novel to compare. It is remarkable how many remain true to the book, a testament to its perfection.

Poetic Read Aloud
I usually choose the books I read aloud to my children based on what books my nine-year-old son would enjoy. However, he was gone visiting his grandparents for a few weeks in early August and I decided to read The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett aloud to the other kids. I had never read it before *gasp* and I've been wanting to. I hoped that my daughters would enjoy it.

We were all immediately captivated by the story of the rotten, unloved Mary growing up in India. After being orphaned by cholera, Mary is sent to live with a reclusive, crippled uncle-in-law in a sprawling manor in England.

In literature, there is not a much more cryptic setting than a large English mansion filled with hundreds of closed-up rooms and surrounded by locked and hidden gardens. Add the unsettling sound of wailing coming through the walls at night and it's a genuine mystery.

I thoroughly enjoyed the book. The words flowed easily from my tongue as if poetry and I delighted to read it aloud. I especially had fun attempting to imitate the broad Yorkshire dialect of several characters. Her use of gentle sarcasm and irony reminded me of C.S. Lewis in the Narnia Chronicles. The descriptions of the garden were exquisite--capturing the coming of spring perfectly. It made me want to plant something pretty. I thought the message beautiful and inspiring.I am a new fan of Frances Hodgson Burnett and if my husband was currently allowing me to buy new books, I would order The Little Princess (love the movie versions) right away.

My kids, while they listened attentively for the first half of The Secret Garden, seemed to lose interest once the first mystery was solved. My seven-year-old daughter appreciated the tale the most, as I expected, and once he returned home my son eagerly joined us for our evening readings even though he had apparently read it in school last year and thought it was "a stupid, boring book". I'm afraid that my children's appreciation for great literature has been overshadowed by Pixar, Harry Potter and the like and will need to be cultivated more in this house. I, for one, look forward to it.

Where It May All Have Begun [BBC 51]
This book involves the trio of youths who conspire -- in a nice way -- to make the elders of their environs look abashfully gullible to the conniving power of 10 year old minds.

The three leaders are an expatriate child whose parents toll to cholera in India delivers her to England in a mansion of over 100 rooms. Her uncle is anything but warm and fuzzy and leaves all attending o the child to his help while he sees the world -- apparently embittered as he lost a beautiful wife 10 years earlier -- something he would never attain again as his wealth may not get the attention of women as his hunchback is not attractive to anyone.

The little orphaned girl begins to do a few things in the overwhelmingly boring environment of the mansion-- she obtains health. She eats and plays and then finds the garden where her muscles also get exercise while she gets fresh air and occasional exercise by weeding and digging.

Ultimately the garden leads her to meet Dickon -- a pied piper or Peter Pan character who can whistle and play instruments which charm the wild animals in the moor surrounding the estate.He also knows nature and helps the growing of the garden.From there comes the meeting of Colin -- the lord of the house and the cousin of the Indian orphan, Mary.From these meetings comes the great conspiracy -- and all is a secret created and conceived in the garden.

The children at work beneath the noses of their guardians who can do what the adults cannot is the central focus.Harry Potter may have been inspired by this novel.So too may have been many other classic novels for children in which the meetings and conquests are adult in nature, but childlike in attempt.

So too may have this been inspired by Bronte and her Jane Eyre.Great literature breeding off and creating inspiration for other great literature is always a highlight in any reader-quest.This is a novel to be read for that purpose alone, if not for the story which has endured over one hundred years.

Gardens Blooming in the Heart
Set in Victorian England a century ago this endearing children's classic remains as refreshing in our modern age as when it was first published--literary dew on the roses.True, it lacks the swashbuckling adventure and terrifying physical dangers which typically appeal to boys, but it does transport readers back into a simper era, when people felt closer to the land and all living things--attributes which we are starting to rediscover.

Orphaned by the death of her socialite parents in India, where she was accustomed to being catered to by her Ayah, Mary Lennox arrives in Yorkshire, England with a chip on her shoulder and an ache in her abandoned heart. Spoiled, selfish, arrogant and disdaining common folk she quickly is ignored by most of the overburdened staff at Craven Hall and left to her own devices to while away empty time.Worst of all, even her taciturn uncle takes no interest in her; in fact he seems to shun his own home. The only servant who is kind and friendly to the sullen arrival is a sweet Yorkshire maid.

Bored yet curious about the strange cries and groans she overhears Mary starts to explore her new surroundings' exterior and interior.Outside, she discovers a secret garden, hidden away and unloved behind ivy-covered walls, with only one entrance door which is mysteriously locked.Inside the manor house she stumbles upon a hidden room in which lies a wretched, bedridden boy--her ten-year-old cousin, Collin--who thinks he is developing a hunch back and will soon die. Spoiled, selfish and denied parental love as well, the boy alternates between moments of pique and a natural, juvenile interest in someone his own age. Despite the clash of wills the rejected children gradually come to understand each other; she encourages Collin to combat his gloomy prognosis and try to walk.Is there a conspiracy between doctor and housekeeper to prevent the boy from getting well and growing up?

But the Garden Cure is close at hand, for Mary meets Dickon, the country lad who lives nearby--a fellow who has a sunny presence and a way with all living things. Animals trust him; even the wild ones are tamed in his presence.After assuring Mary that the secret garden is still "wick" (alive) they undertake to restore it to life. But why did her uncle lock it up long years ago, abandoning a place so much beauty and healing for the soul?What will lead Mary to rise above her self-centered existence in order to help Collin break his pessimism and her uncle reject his despair?A timeless treasure for those who appreciate the ablity of gardens to bloom in unlikely places--even in the human heart.

NB:the excellent PBS version includes surrealistic scenes bordering on Black Magic as in JANE EYRE--making the story darker than the author intended. Still an excellent film.

... Read more

Product Description

This collection was designed for optimal navigation on Kindle and other electronic devices. It is indexed alphabetically and by category, making it easier to access individual books and stories. This collection offers lower price, the convenience of a one-time download, and it reduces the clutter in your digital library. All books included in this collection feature a hyperlinked table of contents. The collection is complimented by an author biography and illustrations. Author's biography and stories in the trial version.

Customer Reviews (1)

Perfect format for the Kindle!
I've purchased over 20 of these complete author collections from this publisher. I have purchased William Shakespear, Charles Dckens, Mark Twain, Edgar Alan Poe, Fyodor Dostoevsky, Leo Tolstoy, Jule Verne, Oscar Wilde, Alexander Dumas, and a few others. These collections work superbly on the Kindle. Take Mark Twain collection. The collection includes huge number of Mark Twain's works all in one place, searchable and well-organized. If I would have purchased all these books separately, searching for `The Gilded Age' among hundreds of other books on my Kindle would be a nightmare. With Mobile Reference collections, I simply click `Works of Mark Twain', then click Novels> `The Gilded Age'. I can also click `List of works in alphabetical order' > `G' > `Gilded Age'. If I forget the book title but remember that `The Gilded Age' was written by Mark Twain early in his career, I can click on `List of works in chronological order' > (1873) `The Gilded Age'.

If I want another author, say, Charles Dickens, I click `Home' > `Works of Charles Dickens'. If I want Dostoevsky, I click `Works of Fyodor Dostoyevsky'. I think this format is perfect for organizing books on the Kindle.

Inside collections, each book has links to chapters and footnotes. The text is nicely formatted and seems to be complete and accurate - something that cannot always be said about inexpensive ebooks. I think these collections are great bargains both in terms of saved money, time, and book organization!
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This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

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I sure hope they reprint ROBIN if this is only 374 pages
I have not seen this edition.My copy is a 1922 2nd printing that kept me up until 1:35 in the morning and as soon as I woke up (after feeding the cat), I started on the sequel, ROBIN.

The book covers the late 19th century through the summer of 1914.The Head of the House of Coombe is considered a very, very wicked man.He has never married.He supports Feather, a selfish, frivolous widow with the face and eyes of an angel.Feather is Robin's mother, but not much of one. Poor little Robin is six years old before she even knows what mothers are, let alone that she has one.It is Lord Coombe who changes Robin's loveless and cheerless existence even as his relationship with her mother inadvertently ends her first friendship.Is she secretly his daughter, as some gossips would have it?Much later in the book, as years pass, we find out why Lord Coombe supports Feather and does so much for Robin, who hates him because of the loss of Donal, her friend.We also meet an elderly Duchess, who is the Head's old friend and very intelligent woman.There's a evil German agent who has evil designs on the beautiful and intelligent, but naive, teen that Robin has become.Robin meets her Donal again at her very first party.He is a handsome young man.Will their friendship resume where it left off?By the way, during the party a girl named Kathryn casually tells Robin that "...somebody important has been assassinated in the Balkan countries."If you know your history, you know what that means.If this reprint doesn't include ROBIN, then buy or borrow a used copy. ... Read more

Product Description
This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Sickening
I started this book thinking it was a well written, enjoyable Burnett book.Boy, was I wrong.I did make it halfway through the book, but, after a while, having the heroine (I use this term loosely, she is NOT likable) being described as "lovely", "beautiful", and "the envy of all around her" gets rather boring.Especially when it occurs ever other sentence.

I was so disappointed.I immediately deleted this from my Kindle.This has really put me off Frances Hodgson Burnett writing for quite some time.

Atypical of this author
Having grown up with "The Secret Garden", my expectations of this book were not aligned with its content.I'm accustomed to a sweet quality and a high moral tone from this author, and was disappointed with what I read.For my personal taste, much too much time was spent dwelling on the physical beauty of the title character. After a certain point I began to find the repeated references to her physical perfections a little creepy. There is, at one point, a rather lengthy description of something we would now consider extremely abusive behavior toward an animal, but in the book it's used to demonstrate the nobility and strength of will of the person inflicting the abuse.Finally, there is an extremely serious crime committed, and the perpetrator gets away with it because the victim wasn't a nice person, and the perpetrator felt they had suffered at his hands.
Of course, Burnett writes well, and the sentence structure and vocabulary are far superior to most of what is currently being published; hence the two stars.But I didn't find much plot here, nor did I particularly sympathize with the main character.There was a certain lack of warmth throughout the book that surprised me, based on previous experience with this author.
If you're looking for Burnett's usual ability to find the good in outwardly-difficult people, you'd probably do better to look further.If you think that being pretty and undergoing difficulties entitles you to defy moral and legal bounds, this might be the book for you.

Surprisingly Feminist
Although this book is a bit difficult to read, and forsooth some might be put off by the old english, it is well worth the effort.I have always considered this author a childern's author, and was pleased to discover this is not a children's book. Considering the author and the date it was written, I was surprised the book was so feminist and somewhat racy. ... Read more

Product Description
She pointed to a gate in a wall of shrubbery. "There's lots o' flowers in summer-time, but there's nothin' bloomin' now. One of the gardens is locked up. No one has been in it for ten years."Amazon.com Review
Mistress Mary is quite contrary until she helps her gardengrow. Along the way, she manages to cure her sickly cousin Colin, whois every bit as imperious as she. These two are sullen little peas ina pod, closed up in a gloomy old manor on the Yorkshire moors ofEngland, until a locked-up garden captures their imaginations and putsthe blush of a wild rose in their cheeks; "It was the sweetest,most mysterious-looking place any one could imagine. The high wallswhich shut it in were covered with the leafless stems of roses whichwere so thick, that they matted together.... 'No wonder it is still,'Mary whispered. 'I am the first person who has spoken here for tenyears.'" As new life sprouts from the earth, Mary and Colin'ssour natures begin to sweeten. For anyone who has ever felt afraid tolive and love, The Secret Garden's portrayal of reawakeningspirits will thrill and rejuvenate. Frances Hodgson Burnett createscharacters so strong and distinct, young readers continue to identifywith them even 85 years after they were conceived. (Ages 9 to12) ... Read more

Customer Reviews (274)

Delightful fiction for the family
This classic engages and captivates the reader from the beginning. Everyone loves to uncover hidden secrets. The main character is an orphan girl called Mary whose curiosity, intelligence and unpretentious character not only win the hearts of all around, buthelp her to solve the mystery of the Secret Garden.

Under cover in a bygone England.
Normally, I don't delve into juvenile literature that often, but the 1948 movie was so indelible for me that I went to Ms. Burnett's sourcework to find what treasures could be found within. Like a good yarn, it captivated me until I finished it 3 days later. There were more characters than the film (expected)and there were shifting alliances and sub-plots as you went along. Still, the suspense and mystery builds to a wonderful conclusion. Despite, subtle racial and class allusions within that may trouble politically-correct devotees, the psychological and moral lessons within for the reader outweigh any censorship as far as I am concerned knowing its historicity. The very fable itself serves notice as to the benefits of solitary improvement. What "Treasure Island" did for this man, "The Secret Garden" would surely do for any girl. A Charmingly told yarn.

Hleping Gardens Bloom
Set in Victorian England a century ago this endearing children's classic remains as refreshing in our modern age as when it was first published--literary dew on the roses.True, it lacks the swashbuckling adventure and terrifying physical dangers which typically appeal to boys, but it does transport readers back into a simper era, when people felt closer to the land and all living things--attributes which we are starting to rediscover.

Orphaned by the death of her socialite parents in India, where she was accustomed to being catered to by her Ayah, Mary Lennox arrives in Yorkshire, England with a chip on her shoulder and an ache in her abandoned heart. Spoiled, selfish, arrogant and disdaining common folk she quickly is ignored by most of the overburdened staff at Craven Hall and left to her own devices to while away empty time.Worst of all, even her taciturn uncle takes no interest in her; in fact he seems to shun his own home. The only servant who is kind and friendly to the sullen arrival is a sweet Yorkshire maid.

Bored yet curious about the strange cries and groans she overhears Mary starts to explore her new surroundings' exterior and interior.Outside, she discovers a secret garden, hidden away and unloved behind ivy-covered walls, with only one entrance door which is mysteriously locked. Inside the manor house she stumbles upon a hidden room in which lies a wretched, bedridden boy--her ten-year-old cousin, Collin--who thinks he is developing a hunch back and will soon die. Spoiled, selfish and denied parental love as well, the boy alternates between moments of pique and a natural, juvenile interest in someone his own age. Despite the clash of wills the rejected children gradually come to understand each other; she
encourages Collin to combat his gloomy prognosis and try to walk.Is there a conspiracy between doctor and housekeeper to prevent the boy from getting well and growing up?

But the Garden Cure is close at hand, for Mary meets Dickon, the country lad who lives nearby--a fellow who has a sunny presence and a way with all living things. Animals trust him; even the wild ones are tamed in his presence.After assuring Mary that the secret garden is still "wick" (alive) they undertake to restore it to life. But why did her uncle lock it up long years ago, abandoning a place so much beauty and healing for the soul?What will lead Mary to rise above her self-centered existence in order to help Collin break his pessimism and her uncle reject his despair?A timeless treasure which reminds us that even seemingly dead gardens can bloom again--even in human hearts.

NB:the excellent PBS version includes surrealistic scenes bordering on Black Magic as in JANE EYRE--making the story darker than the author intended. Still an excellent film.

If you must get this book, get the one with the Tasha Tudor illustrations
I tried to attach this review to an edition of this book with Tasha Tudor's illustrations, but unfortunately my review somehow ended up in a group of reviews of the DVD of one of the movie adaptations through some glitch. Therefore, I'm reposting my review here so it will actually attach to the book it is meant for.

First, let me say that I am a huge fan of Tasha Tudor's lovely illustrations for both "The Secret Garden" and "A Little Princess". To me, the Tudor editions are really the classic evocations of these books, and it's even a bit irksome to see editions with other illustrations when there are so many other wonderful stories for those talented folks to work on. Therefore, if you're going to buy an edition of "The Secret Garden," I'd say the Tudor-illustrated edition, preferably in hardback with the lovely dust jacket, is the one to get.

Having said that, I'll admit I have had mixed feelings about this story both as a child and as an adult. In a nutshell, it's the story of a spoiled, ill-mannered little British girl named Mary who is being raised in India in late Victorian times. After her entire family dies in an epidemic, Mary is shipped off to live in a remote castle-mansion in the English countryside, where the climate (cold) and the accents (such as that of the Scottish maid) are foreign to her, and no one pays any attention to her. Exploring on her own, Mary discovers a "secret" walled garden and works to restore it with the help of a gardener and a local country boy named Dickon, who tames animals as well as being a whiz with growing things. Mary also discovers she has an "invalid" cousin, Colin, around her own age, who sequesters himself in his bedroom. Colin and Mary both have disagreeable personalities at the beginning because they've been ignored and neglected by the adults in their lives, but as time goes by and they spend more time outdoors in the garden, playing with animals and the like, they help each other develop into nicer and more physically healthy children.

If this sounds like a very old-fashioned Victorian story, it more or less is. Each time I've tried to read it (several times from about age 12, when a popular movie version was out, up through adulthood) I find the beginning pretty exciting, what with Mary suddenly losing her family and being shipped off to a strange place, but then it bogs down in the middle. The kids never do much except mess around in the countryside and think introspective thoughts; there are no big "adventures" to speak of. Unlike "A Little Princess," you don't have the hero/ heroine vs. evil villains plot aspect; it's basically a book about some children fighting the demons in themselves. The neglectful adults, such as Mary's uncle, are not particularly demonized nor are they abusive; one gets the impression that they just don't quite know how to handle raising the kids, which again is very Victorian given that the raising of children was often handed off to nannies or servants.

I am sure there are children and adults who would just love this book, especially all the descriptions of cute animal tricks and flowers coming to life, as well as the whole "children thoughtfully overcoming the mistakes of adults in their lives" theme, but I am equally sure there are folks who, like me, would prefer a story with a little more going on in it, such as "A Little Princess" (or even something wackier like "Alice in Wonderland"). The idea that kids who are physically or perhaps mentally/spiritually ill to some degree just need to run around in the sunshine and have pleasant manners and it all goes away is also a bit disturbing. Despite the nice illustrations (in the Tudor edition) and the charming animal antics, it's just not my type of book.

Great book for all ages!
Even though this book was supposedly written "for children", I ENJOYED reading it VERY much! I love happy endings, and the book provided that. ... Read more

Product Description
Sara Crewe is a gifted and well-mannered child, and Captain Crewe, her father, is an extraordinary wealthy man. So Miss Minchin, headmistress of Sara's new boarding school in London, is pleased to treat Sara as her star pupil--a pampered little princess.

But suddenly, one dreadful day, Sara's world collapses around her. All of her lovely things are taken from her and she is forbidden to associate with her friends. Her father has died penniless in India.

Miss Minchin can now show her greedy and meanspirited nature to its fullest. The little princess is reduced to a shabby drudge. But Sara does not break, and with the help of a monkey, an Indian lascar, and the strange, ailing gentleman next door, she not only survives her sufferings but help those around her.


From the Trade Paperback edition. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Better than Sappy
A Little Princess follows the story of Sara Crewe, a young girl whose mother died when she was a baby and who has been sent to bording school.She has the finest clothes and toys and anything she wants but isn't spoiled (the story is a fairy tale, by the way).She imagines herself as a princess and wants to be kind wise and just.She does good deeds as her way of "scattering largess to the population."This results in her being the social butterfly of the bording school and earns her the animosity of its queen bee.All this changes in an instant when her fortune is lost and she becomes a scullery maid in the same boarding school.She works all day, sleeps in an unheated attic, and is underfed.She now imagines herself as a princess in disguise, and continues to try and do good deeds for anyone less fotunate.But now she has another identity too - a soldier, like her father, who must live on rations and bravely face each day.

I didn't find this book to be overly sappy and sentimental, but it got close to the borderline at times.There were plenty of discussions of dolls and lacey dresses and ribbons.I read this as an adult.I guess these are supposed to appeal to little girls who want to have a little princessy playground and so would love to read about ribbons, but I think descriptions of lace would have put me off as a child as well.Like I said, these only get borderline sappy, probably because Sara soon becomes penniless and enters the lower class.As a scullery maid she experiences hunger, phsychological abuse from the bording school mistress, and a grinding work schedule.This is not sugar coated for the children, but it isn't the focus either.The focus is on Sara's internal thoughts, her relationships with her few loyal student friends, and what she thinks of the neighbors and the new people she meets and things she sees.So even though there is all this poverty it is there as a setting and not because the author has an axe to grind.Even the ending is fairy tale, but partly bitter-sweet. Strangely enough, this book came across as realistic.

This is a children's book, but functions as a book for adults as well.For example, the estate agent's diplomacy in getting Sara hired by the bording school after she is found to be penniless has some subtlties that are going to be more real for older readers.

I recommend this book to all.It is a children's book that works for adults too.It skirts the border of sappy, but for me didn't cross over at any point.It was a good story that I read through quickly and did not get bored with or bogged down by. ... Read more

Product Description
We are proud to offer this five-book set: a collection of classic tales that no child should grow up without! The introduction to Peter and Wendy or the Cowardly Lion and Dorothy are magical moments that a child will never forget.Bring this collection into your child's life and provide the wonderful gift of imagination to enhance their world for years to come. Includes, Peter Pan and Other Plays, The Secret Garden, Hans Andersen's Fairy Tales, The Wind in the Willows and The Wonderful Wizard of OZ. ... Read more

Product Description
The beloved original text now offered in a beautiful paperback edition by esteemed illustrator Inga Moore.

First published in 1911, The Secret Garden has entranced readers with the courage of two unhappy and withering children who become determined to make their lives, and the lives of others around them, more joyful. In this engaging unabridged edition, Inga Moore’s beautifully observed illustrations capture the magic of the secret garden springing to life under the tender care of Mary Lennox; her spoiled invalid cousin, Colin; and Dickon, a nature-loving Yorkshire boy. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (15)

Beautiful book, incredible value
This is a gorgeous copy of The Secret Garden, and the price is incredible. I bought a copy for my daughter, her best friend, my niece. Then I bought a copy to donate to my daughter's school library. And the ladies in the school office all wanted copies for their grandchildren, so I ordered copies for them as well.

The illustrations are beautiful - like something out of a fairy tale, nice size book, paper is high-quality, heavier weight. Complete, unabridged text. You can't go wrong with this book. It makes a lovely gift.

Love it!
I am reading this with my 9 year old daughter and am enjoying it as much as she is. It is a keepsake edition and the beautiful drawings enhance the text.

This is what my 7 y.o. son had to say after he read it...

This story is about a girl named Mary Lennox. She first lives in India with her Ayah. Then suddenly her Ayah dies from cholera. Then Mary is sent to live with her uncle in a huge manor in England. One night, she hears a faint crying. Then she follows it and she meets a boy named Collin Craven. She also makes friends with a boy named Dickon. The three of them become great friends and bring the forgotten garden back to life.

beautiful book
The book is beautiful and the story is just as beautiful. Something to always remember.

Far too advanced for small child
I thought I was ordering a beautifully illustrated book for my 5 year old granddaughter.I would not have ordered this edition if I had known it was so advanced.It is a pretty book but more on adult level than for a child. ... Read more

Product Description
This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Product Description
Enraged at not being invited to the princess's christening, the wicked fairy casts a spell that dooms the princess to sleep for 100 years. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (88)

Dissapearing Mary
Frances Hodgson Burnett's charming classic remains as enchanting as it was when I first read it as a child nearly 20 years ago. However, in re-reading it recently, I realized that the story's main characters seem to receive very compartmentalized attention throughout the narrative. It seems odd that the story begins with Mary, is apparently about Mary for the first half of the book, but then suddenly switches its focus to either Colin or the Garden as the main character in the second half. Mary diminishes; she is still a part of the book in the second half, but she no longer does any more significant growing or changing, and she becomes more of a supporting actress to Colin (and/or the Garden). The book ends with Colin and the Garden, and Mary is hardly even mentioned in the entire last chapter. It seems odd that the story would begin exclusively with Mary, beoccupied with Mary for half the time, and then that Mary would sort of quietly fade away after that. It's a delightful story of two very sick and spoiled children learning how to care for one another and the Secret Garden, but the structure may leave something to be desired.

Illustrations Tell The Story
The Tasha Tudor illustrated verson of Frances Hodgson Burnett's classic THE SECRET GARDEN is in my private collection because of the illustrator.
The too thin in every way Mary Lennox is sent to live with her uncle. She is thought to be the most disagreeable child ever and the story unfolds of the young boy who believes he cannot walk and Dickon who speaks to animals and their adventures in the abandon garden.
Tasha Tudor's illustrations tell the story with the detail of an age gone by. It is a keeper for all time. For many people this timeless story from childhood is the beginning of a life-long love of gardening.
Nash Black, author of QUALIFYING LAPS.

Mixed feelings about the story, but beautiful Tasha Tudor illustrations
I am a huge fan of Tasha Tudor's lovely illustrations for both "The Secret Garden" and "A Little Princess".To me, these are really the classic evocations of these books, and it's even a bit irksome to see editions with other illustrations when there are so many other wonderful stories for those talented folks to work on.Therefore, if you're going to buy an edition of "The Secret Garden," I'd say the Tudor-illustrated edition, preferably in hardback with the lovely dust jacket, is the one to get.

Having said that, I'll admit I have had mixed feelings about this story both as a child and as an adult.In a nutshell, it's the story of a spoiled, ill-mannered little British girl named Mary who is being raised in India in late Victorian times.After her entire family dies in an epidemic, Mary is shipped off to live in a remote castle-mansion in the English countryside, where the climate (cold) and the accents (such as that of the Scottish maid) are foreign to her, and no one pays any attention to her.Exploring on her own, Mary discovers a "secret" walled garden and works to restore it with the help of a gardener and a local country boy named Dickon, who tames animals as well as being a whiz with growing things.Mary also discovers she has an "invalid" cousin, Colin, around her own age, who sequesters himself in his bedroom.Colin and Mary both have disagreeable personalities at the beginning because they've been ignored and neglected by the adults in their lives, but as time goes by and they spend more time outdoors in the garden, playing with animals and the like, they help each other develop into nicer and more physically healthy children.

If this sounds like a very old-fashioned Victorian story, it more or less is.Each time I've tried to read it (several times from about age 12, when a popular movie version was out, up through adulthood) I find the beginning pretty exciting, what with Mary suddenly losing her family and being shipped off to a strange place, but then it bogs down in the middle.Unlike "A Little Princess," you don't have the hero/ heroine vs. evil villains plot aspect; it's basically a book about some children fighting the demons in themselves.The neglectful adults, such as Mary's uncle, are not particularly demonized nor are they abusive;one gets the impression that they just don't quite know how to handle raising the kids, which again is very Victorian given that the raising of children was often handed off to nannies or servants.I am sure there are children and adults who would just love this book, especially all the descriptions of cute animal tricks and flowers coming to life, as well as the whole "children overcoming the mistakes of adults in their lives" theme, but I am equally sure there are folks who, like me, would prefer a story with a little more going on in it, such as "A Little Princess" (or even something wackier like "Alice in Wonderland").The idea that kids who are physically or perhaps mentally/spiritually ill to some degree just need to run around in the sunshine and have pleasant manners and it all goes away is also a bit disturbing.I'm giving it four stars mostly on the basis of the wonderful illustrations and the animal tales, as it's just not my type of book.

Wonderful Movie
It had been so long since I had seen this movie I had forgotten what a great story it is.Well worth the price and definately a collector to be enjoyed over and over.

In most countries, cousins marrying is no big deal
I just want to set the record straight here for those who are bothered that this version has Colin and Mary get married. I agree it was dumb to even have an ending that didn't match the book; why can't filmmakers just leave plots alone? BUT it used to be commonplace and normal for cousins (and yes, first cousins) to marry each other. In the U.S., it was legal, accepted and sometimes encouraged (to keep money or bloodlines in the family) prior to the Civil War. Remember Ashley and Melanie in Gone with the Wind? They were cousins! And in the rest of the world besides the U.S. it's still not considered taboo.

When I read the novel, I assumed that they would end up marrying. Mary would almost definitely not have considered Dickon because he was from a lower social and economic class.

The United States has the only bans on cousin marriage in the Western world. For a short overview of why Americans think cousins marrying is taboo and the rest of the world doesn't, go to straightdope and search for "What's Wrong with Cousins Marrying". ... Read more

Product Description
Sara CreweThe White PeopleThe Dawn of a To-morrowLittle Saint Elizabeth and Other Stories ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

A great read,but too many typos!
I love the fiction of Frances Hodgson Burnett, so when I got the opportunity to buy this omnibus edition, I jumped at it. It has days and days-worth of good reading, BUT there are many typos from the digitizing process--it can be distracting!
Next time, I'll consider downloading similar books for free from Project Gutenberg, if they're available--their proofreading seems to be better. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (1)

Gorgeous pictures, shorter version of the story
My girls (aged 3 and 5) love the exquisite illustrations in this lush book. I know purists abhor adridged editions, but for my girls the story is plenty long enough, and the rich pictures make every page of this book magical. The language is for older children, but the format makes the story accessible to pre- and early readers. ... Read more

Product Description
After losing her parents, young Mary Lennox is sent from India to live in her uncle's gloomy mansion on the wild English moors. She is lonely and has no one to play with, but one day she learns of a secret garden somewhere in the grounds that no one is allowed to enter. Then Mary uncovers an old key in a flowerbed - and a gust of magic leads her to the hidden door. Slowly she turns the key and enters a world she could never have imagined. With a heartwarming introduction by Sophie Dahl, "The Secret Garden" is one of the twelve best-loved classic stories being launched in the newly-branded Puffin Classics series in March 2008. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Still a favourite
I re-read this book after many years and it's still a favourite, no matter how old I am. It's an uplifting story with a happy ending and, despite being a 'childrens' book', provides some interesting insight into human nature. If you love nature, gardens and British stories, you'll very much enjoy this story.

For those of you in America, if the only version you know of this story is the Hallmark Hall of Fame TV movie from the 1980s, do yourself a favour and read the book! That film is absolute rubbish and not true to the book. Don't let it put you off.

This edition is particularly good if you are buying it for your child or use in the classroom, as there is a discussion guide at the end to stimulate conversation, as well as a brief biography of the author and a mini guide to the Yorkshire dialect used in the book.

It's a great story read if the reality of life in the 21st century is getting you down.

Boys LOVE this
I read this when I was a little girl, many times.

I just read it to my little boys, and they LOVE it.It is a story that at the beginning, shows us poor, cross, orphaned Mary as a main character.As the book goes on, Colin becomes the main character -- poor, spoiled, crippled Colin.And Dickon and Martha add a sense of spirit and courage and good nature.

This is a wonderful book for reading out loud.The accents are fun.

Note #1 -- Frances Hodgson Burnett seems to practice her own private label of spirituality, very magical, not necessarily Christian.This is condensed within the book to a few sections (Colin in the garden) and skippable.

Note #2 -- for some reason, this edition of the book offers a study guide at the end.Somewhat lame, but it does not take away from the story line. ... Read more