My Review of "Return to The Secret Garden" by Holly Webb


Ms. Webb has done an outstanding job with "Return to the Secret Garden", having this reader trying in vein to figure out, initially, the identity of each character. With Ms. Webb opening her story with her own set of characters, we are drawn to them before we are finally introduced to those in "The Secret Garden".

The story is narrated by "Emmie", who is ten and is one of many children taken from an orphanage in London just before the Second World War. And where are they taken......Misselthwaite Manor, the setting of Burnett's book, "The Secret Garden". And why were they taken there....The connection is established with the presence of Mrs. Craven. There had been a plaque in the orphange that read "Founded by Mr. Archilbad Craven of Misselthwaite Manor in gratitude for the recovery of his son, Colin".

Emmie, much like Mary in "The Secret Garden", is just as miserable and unhappy as Mary. While at the orphanage, Emmie""adopts" a stray kitten she calls "Lucy". She kept the kitten alive by feeding her the "fish paste" sandwiches. (I'd be giving away my "fish paste" sandwiches as well!). Emmie had to leave the cat behind and is quite lonely and she happens to be the only girl of her age in the group until she meets the little terror, Jack, Mrs. Craven's son. (You would think I would have this figured out by now.....nope!) She later meets Mrs. Craven as well. With Jack heard crying at night, there has to be a connection between himself, Mary Lennox and Mrs. Craven. This reader still has trouble seeing the connection)......until Emmie finds Mary's diaries which started in 1910 with references being made to the "Secret Garden". Lo and behold, Emmie finds "The Secret Garden". It was not the "desolate winter garden" of Mary's time, rather the end of summer garden full of roses and lilies.

Jack and Emmie finally become friends(perhaps because they are so much alike; not much unlike Mary Lennox...you would think I would have it figured out ....nope!....well sort of.) Jack's father, Lieutenant Craven, is in the Air Force and returns home on leave. The gardener, Mr. Sowerby, has been writing him, telling him about Emmie, her loneliness and about the kitten being left behind. Before he returns for home, he goes to the orphange and painstakingly searches and finds "Lucy"
and returns with Emmie's beloved cat. Lieutenant Craven's visit is short-lived. He must return to Dunkirk, where he is killed rescuing soldiers.

After Mrs. Craven receives the telegraph about Lieutenant Craven, she escapes to "The Secret Garden" where Emmie finds her weeping.. Mr. Sowerby shouts at Emmie saying she is to leave, that "it's her place, his and hers, their secret". He banishes Emmie from the garden.

Emmie is heartbroken. The garden made her feel special. She does return to the garden, however, to rescue her cat. She is now in the garden with Mrs. Craven, who says to Emmie "I stole this garden you know" and "I can't really complain if you do".

Emmie and this reader now realize that Mrs. Craven is Mary Lennox, who was married to Colin Craven, the sick young boy who, with the aid of Mary and Dickon(Mr. Sowerby), stood on his own two feet, worked in the garden and had a firm belief in "magic" and "scientific discoveries".

Mary Lennox had been a sullen, mean, little wretch of a girl, much the same as Emmie. Yet she becomes a sensitive and caring adult. Emmie now has the opportunity to change.

"Return to The Secret Garden" shows us the effects of war, friendship, hope and, most importantly - the belief in magic!

Holly Webb is a masterful writer, pulling us in from the very beginning, but why oh why didn't Mary marry Dickon and wasn't Colin her cousin????? This reader is mystified!

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Since I've yet to finish a book yet this year, I thought it was a good time to go ahead and work on the reviews that I never had a chance to post last year. Which, especially in the case of Return to the Secret Garden, is a shame. This book was absolutely adorable, and I wish I'd been on top of my reviews enough to give it the pre-release love that it deserved. On the bright side, hopefully I'm reminding some of you out there of its existence, and it will scoot up your reading lists after this review.

First off, I feel it's only fair to explain to you that the original book is one of my all time favorites. Coupled with that, is the fact that Holly Webb is one of my all time favorite Middle Grade writers. So, you can easily see that my expectations were high here. I was so thrilled that the sequel to my favorite book would be done by one of my favorite authors. It doesn't get any more perfect than that! I was so eager to make my way back to Misselthwaite, and explore it with new eyes. I'm happy to say, I wasn't disappointed.

Much like the Mary we remember, Emmie is a little tough to love at first. An orphan, Emmie is used to mainly caring for herself and is, as such, a bit distant. Still, I could tell right away that she was a spitfire at heart. Her deep thoughts, her love for her adopted stray cat, all of it pulled me in to her world. It wasn't obvious early on how she would be tied in to the Misselthwaite of old, but I knew she'd fit in just wonderfully.

As it turns out, I was right. The backdrop of this book is the Blitz and it sets the stage expertly for Emmie's transition to her new home. I loved watching her go through the same kinds of feelings as her predecessor. It was that moment when she stepped into the garden though, that really had me rapt. Holly Webb evoked that same magic, the same air of sweet mystery, that the original book so wonderfully had. I ate it up. Even if the original characters hadn't been tied into this, which they absolutely are, I would have been happy just with this small piece of my childhood restored. Stepping back into the secret garden with new eyes was a wonderful feeling.

Truth be told, I really wanted to give this five stars. It was missing this small something that I couldn't fit my finger on though, and so I settled with four. It's really a fabulous book though, and I highly recommend it as an addition to your TBR! Emmie will steal your heart and, if she doesn't succeed alone, so will your new trip into the secret garden. ( )

I absolutely loved the 1993 film version of The Secret Garden, My dad just bought it one day and thought I would like it. If I was smart I would have watched it right away. As I watched, I became mesmerized by that garden and the magic in it. I loved reading the original book too so I was really happy to see and read Return to the Secret Garden from a new author.

Emmie is very much like our Mary. She's an orphan who has no friends other than a sullen cat she named Lucy. She's very skinny and always gets in trouble for the way she acts. Emmie follows in the footsteps of the original very closely which I don't mind too much. I enjoyed rediscovering the secret garden with fresh eyes. The secret garden isn't secret anymore but Emmie discover it because she needs the magic within. She finds a new life in Misselthwaite. She makes friends with a little robin and a boy she finds crying in the middle of the night - Jack. She transforms like Mary did while interacting with the original characters.

The original characters - Mary, Colin, Dickon, and Martha - all make an appearance. It was bittersweet to see where in this version our original characters end up. I never really like it when characters age. They should stay the same always but I did like getting a glimpse of how one person sees these characters all grown up. There's a major event happening surrounding Emmie's arrival in Misselthwaite - WWII. The whole situation of them getting on trains to get out of London reminded me of Narnia. There was a lot of preparation and insight on what happened during those time which I found fascinating to read. I have to mention Lucy and her symbolism in this story. She's the first friend that Emmie makes. She starts being very skinny and wary of Emmie but is desperate enough to go to her because she's starving. They slowly create a bond but then Emmie has to leave her behind which crushes her. Their slow bond reminds me of the magic of the secret garden. Emmie and Lucy grow to depend on each other while the garden that she grows to depend on brings people towards Emmie to create new friendships. Lucy and Emmie are also very much alike.

I had fun exploring the secret garden once again. The original is of course the best but Return to the Secret Garden was such a wonderful story that brought back great memories with a new entertaining story and characters.

Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Jabberwocky for letting me read and review Return to the Secret Garden in exchange for an honest review! ( )

Wonderful! ( )

Thirty years after Mary Lennox discovers the locked door to a walled garden, Emmie Hatton and the rest of the children at a London orphanage are evacuated to Misselthwaite Manor because of the war. Emmie is thin and sullen, much like Mary herself once was. She misses her cat, and dislikes Jack, the son of the house, who is mean and snobbish. But then Emmie discovers a diary, and a garden, and hears someone crying in the dark...

Webb writes with obvious fondness for her source material, though some of the choices she makes are not the ones I would have chosen for the original characters. However, it's still fun to read and make connections. The new story is rather slight in comparison, and I don't think the book would really appeal to readers who have not read the original. But if you're a fan, it's a pleasant and sometimes bittersweet read. ( )