 Frances Eliza Hodgson Burnett was born on November 24, 1849 at Manchester, England. Her father died in 1865 and the family moved to America, settling in Newmarket, Tennessee. There the family that consisted of mother, two sons, and three daughters sought to make a living on a little farm. There were many trying times, but they all worked together bravely. Frances felt that she had the ability to write and felt that she could earn money from it. She began with short stories which were published in Peterson's Magazine and Godey's Lady's Book, but she didn't receive marked success or recognition until she was published the dialect story "Surly Timâ's Trouble" in Scribner's Magazine in 1872. Her girlhood days in Manchester had made her familiar with the Lancashire dialect and she turned to that knowledge to write the story. This launched her career and afterwards she was sought after by publishers. In 1875 Frances married Dr. Swan M. Burnett and traveled extensively throughout Europe. When they finished traveling they took up residence in Washington. Her reputation as a novelist was made with her story of Lancashire life in "That Lass Lowrie" that was published first in Scribner's Magazine and afterwards in book form. The book was a great success. A number of other works followed including "Through One Administration", "Louisiana", "A Fair Barbarian", and "Edith's Burglar", with the first being the most notable. She also wrote "The Secret Garden" and "A Little Princess" and more. She was best known for "Little Lord Fauntleroy", which first appeared as a serial in the November 1885 issue of St. Nicholas. A year after it first appeared as a serial, Burnett's publishers released Fauntleroy as a novel and it became a huge bestseller. Burnett contributed many other stories to St. Nicholas during her lifetime, including "Sara Crewe" in December 1887, which became the sequel to Fauntleroy and was published as A Little Unfairy Princess.
THE SECRET GARDEN There was a movie made and it a particular favorite! Orphaned in India, where her transplanted English parents lived before falling victim to an earthquake, Mary Lennox comes to the cold, aloof household of her uncle, the widower of her mother's twin sister. There, she is viewed as a meddlesome nuisance by the housekeeper, Mrs. Medlock, and is ordered to stay in her room. Mary doesn't obey, of course, and, during one of her unauthorized explorations, she discovers the room of her sickly cousin, Colin. Outside, she finds something even more wondrous: the secret garden of her late aunt. With the help of Dickon, a local boy who can talk with animals, Mary sets to work reclaiming the garden from the weeds and brambles that had overrun it.
The story is essentially about the redemption of two damaged children. Mary, while hale of body, is an emotional cripple. She grew up unloved in a household where her selfish parents handed her off to the servants. Colin is neither physically nor emotionally whole. His father, never having recovered from the death of his wife, rarely visits Colin in the sickroom, leaving the boy's care to the implacable and unaffectionate Mrs. Medlock. The secret garden is a place of rare and wondrous beauty, and it becomes the emotional balm that heals all wounds, both physical and psychological. There, Mary learns how to feel and Colin how to walk. These two form fast friendships with each other and with Dickon, the younger brother of one of Mrs. Medlock's maids.
1. What was the title of Ms. Burnet's first book? 2. Many of the stories have been made into movies but only one is discussed here. What movie and (for discussion) have you seen it? 3. What is the name of the girl and boy in "The Secret Garden"? This Site Index |