Frances Hodgson Burnett

Harriet Walter and Beryl Reid star in this full-cast adaptation of the much-loved children's classic. When spoilt young orphan Mary Lennox is brought back from India to live in her uncle’s house on the Yorkshire Moors, she finds the blunt ways of the staff at Misselthwaite Manor an unpleasant shock. Bored and miserable, it seems as though life in England will be awful. But Misselthwaite has hidden delights and, when Mary begins to discover them, nothing is the same again. First, there is the secret garden – and with it comes a boy who knows all the wonders of the country. He can even talk to the birds! Then, as the old house gives up its biggest secret, Mary forms a magical friendship. Frances Hodgson Burnett's charming story is played out with all the freshness and warmth of the original novel in this BBC Radio full-cast dramatization.

Born in England and transplanted to New York toward the end of the Civil War, Burnett made her home in both countries, and today both countries claim her as their own. The Secret Garden, her best-known work, became an instant modern classic and world-wide bestseller upon its publication in 1911. The text of this Norton Critical Edition is based on the first edition and is accompanied by explanatory annotations. "Backgrounds and Contexts" and "Letters" illuminate important aspects of Burnett’s life and work and include her own writings on gardens and their spiritual healing. Four illustrations point to Burnett’s prominence in popular culture. "Criticism" includes fourteen contemporary reviews and nine recent critical views of The Secret Garden, including Jerry Phillips’s sociopolitical interpretation and Phyllis Bixler’s comparative analysis of the Broadway musical adaptation of the novel. A Chronology and Selected Bibliography are also included.

Following Sterlings spectacularly successful launch of its childrens classic novels (240,000 books in print to date),comes a dazzling new series: Classic Starts. The stories are abridged; the quality is complete. Classic Starts treats the worlds beloved tales (and children) with the respect they deserve--all at an incomparable price. The discovery of a neglected garden transforms the life of a sullen and unloved little girl-and everyone around her, too. When the newly orphaned Mary Lennox leaves her native India and arrives at her uncles mansion in Yorkshire, everything seems strange to her. Then Mary hears of a mysterious garden where no one has set foot in 10 years. With the help of some new friends, she plans to uncover its secrets...and make it blossom once again.

Following Sterlings spectacularly successful launch of its childrens classic novels (240,000 books in print to date),comes a dazzling new series: Classic Starts. The stories are abridged; the quality is complete. Classic Starts treats the worlds beloved tales (and children) with the respect they deserve--all at an incomparable price. Poor Sara Crewe. Once upon a time her beloved father pampered and adored her. But ever since he died, leaving her alone and penniless, shes been caught in the cruel clutches of Miss Minchin, the headmistress at the Select Seminary for Young Ladies, where Sara once studied. But no matter how terrible things get, Sara always has her imagination and goodness of heart to carry her through. This timeless tale of a poor orphan has won childrens hearts for a century--and continues to be a favorite.

A ten-year-old orphan comes to live in a lonely house on the Yorkshire moors where she discovers an invalid cousin and the mysteries of a locked garden.