The secret garden book summary examples

Mary and Dickon take him there in his wheelchair. He was devoted to her before her death, and she had asked him to tend the garden; he has done so ever since, climbing over the wall to prune the roses and keep them alive. Surprised to see Colin, he blurts out that he thought the young master was unable to walk and had a twisted back and legs.

Colin is outraged and pushes himself to his feet, standing upright for the first time in his life to show that he is as straight as anyone. He orders the present company to keep their secret, and afterward, Ben helps the three children restore the garden. Meanwhile, Colin works to restore his strength and health, hoping his father will love him if he is healthy.

As the children restore the garden, he begins to feel an urge to return home, and one night, he dreams his wife is calling him back to her garden. The garden has healed them all. View Collection. Study Guide. The Secret Garden. Frances Hodgson Burnett. Fiction Novel Middle Grade Published in Download PDF. Access Full Guide. Book Brief.

Mary always wanted to have her way, and anything short of that made her fall into a fit of rage. When her parents are killed by a cholera pandemic, she is abandoned, then finally sent to live with her uncle. First, the native dialect is different. Also, she has no personal maid to wait upon her all day. The maidservant who attends to her occasionally has a life outside her orders and had blankly told her she was spoiled.

Mary slowly learns to be independent. A while goes by, and she comes in contact with interesting other people who include; Ben Weatherstaff, Dickon, and Colin Craven.

The secret garden book summary examples: The novel centres on Mary Lennox,

She and her newly made friends tend to this garden, which in turn heals their broken hearts. Spoiler alert: important details of the novel are revealed below. The book opens by talking about the sour look that Mary Lennox constantly wears. She is described as an ugly child who looked the opposite of her beautiful mother. At six, she has grown into an extremely selfish and tyrannical child.

Her stubbornness and defiance made it impossible to secure for her a steady governess as they always resigned early. One day, Mary wakes up in a sour mood and when she realizes it is a servant, not her Ayah that stood beside her, she throws a tantrum. The servant tries to explain why this is so, but Mary refuses to listen to the voice of reason.

She becomes pissed and sour. Mary also befriends Dickon Sowerby, the brother of her housemaid Martha, who is a great lover of nature and is beloved by every living thing, including every animal he meets, and he begins to help Mary tend to the garden. After hearing the soft sound of crying from time to time in the house, Mary eventually discovers Colin, the sickly, demanding son of Mr.

Craven, who remains secluded in his room and is not expected to live long. Mary and Colin are kindred spirits and when she tells him about the secret garden, he becomes determined to see it for himself. She brings Dickon to meet him and they conspire to take Colin to the garden in his wheelchair, but to keep it a secret from the adults in the house.

Just as Mary has grown physically and mentally healthier by spending time in the garden, Colin immediately begins to transform when he enters it and declares that he will now live forever.

The secret garden book summary examples: The Secret Garden opens by introducing

As spring comes, the garden begins to thrive along with the health of Colin and Mary. Soon Colin is able to stand and walk, but the children keep this a secret because he wants to surprise his father when he returns from his travels, hoping that his improved health will enable his father to love him. Unbeknownst to the residents of the manor, Mr.

Craven has begun a simultaneous transformation as a result of the garden's spiritual power. When he returns to Misselthwaite, he is surprised to find that the garden has been discovered and is now thriving again and thrilled that his son, whom he has come to regret neglecting all these years, has now been made strong and healthy through his connection with nature and the power of love that comes from the secret garden.

Read more from the Study Guide. As the days go by, the children together discover the presence of magic in the garden and are enlivened with a new appreciation for life, especially Colin. Colin leads the others in chants where they affirm that magic lives inside of them. With this newfound self-confidence, Colin starts to feel much better and is even able to walk after years of being chair-bound.

The secret garden book summary examples: It is about a

Both Mary and Colin gain weight and transform out of their sickly and sullen former selves. The staff—who have forever known Colin to be poorly behaved and disinterested in playing outside—are very perplexed by this development. In the final chapter, we are brought to a scene where Mr. Craven is sitting by a river in Austria. In a very magical way, he is suddenly able to feel happy and at peace—a rare sensation after years of grief and depression.

Then, that night he has a dream about Mrs. Craven beckoning him to come into the secret garden. These two events propel Mr. Craven to stop his travels and return to his manor.

The secret garden book summary examples: When the spoilt and bad-tempered Mary

Upon arriving, he goes straight to the secret garden, only to find the children there. He is shocked to see them, especially his own son Colin enjoying himself and walking like a normal child. Father and son are reunited and reconcile. In the final scene, they walk together into the house while the servants look on in disbelief. The Question and Answer section for The Secret Garden is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

Why did Mary and Dickon want to take Colin to the garden? They want Colin to get out of the house and experience some fresh air. Dickon and Mary take Colin to see the garden, and there he discovers that he is able to stand. Using specific examples and quotes from the book, compare and contrast the personalities of Dickon and Colin.