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chuckroMary Lennox was orphaned by cholera and sent to live with her uncle Archibald in Yorkshire, where she learns the secrets held in the big gray house and the Magic that comes from growing things. I can recite the entire musical, and I saw the non-musical movie that came out when I was in middle school, but amazingly, I never actually read this book. Since it’s public domain, I decided that was easy to rectify.
I’m amused at how much dialogue was use word-for-word in the musical. Though I have no recollection of the name of Archie’s manor (Misselthwaite) ever appearing.
Among other things: The musical makes a moderately big deal that Lily (Archie’s wife) and Rose (Mary’s mother) were sisters, and that Mary has Lily’s eyes. Archie mentions very early in the book that Captain Lennox (Mary’s father) was Lily’s brother. (Heck, Lily—“Lilias”—doesn’t even have a name until the very end of the book!) Colin is described as having the same eyes as his mother, cobalt blue with long lashes.
Mr. Pitcher (Archie’s butler) and Dr. Craven (Archie’s poor cousin and Colin’s personal physician) seem to have been merged/expanded into Dr. Neville Craven for the musical. The book’s Dr. Craven, as we’re told, isn’t a bad person and isn’t deliberately trying to keep Colin ill; the same can’t really be said for Neville, whose treatment of Colin is somewhere between Munchausen By Proxy and straight-out revenge.
Susan Sowerby (Martha and Dickon’s mother), despite her almost-entirely offstage presence, is heaped with praise and admiration by so many characters I can’t help but wonder if she’s the author-insert character. (And she’s basically a non-entity in the musical.)
Martha tells Mary that Lily had a fall in the garden, and that’s what killed her; it’s unclear whether this induced labor or what, but she apparently died around the time Colin was born. A big deal is made of not letting Colin realize when he’s looking at that tree, but then nothing actually comes of that potential conflict.
Introductions are in a bit of a different order in the book: Ben introduces Mary to the Robin, rather than Dickon. (Dickon, who is clearly intended to be older than 12 in the musical.) Mary finds the key and the door to the secret garden (with Robin’s help) before she meets Dickon, Archie or Colin. And to the extent that Lily or any of the ghosts matter, it’s only in the last two chapters of the book.
The musical is much more clearly a story about the adults and their interactions and parallels with the children—it’s as much about Archie accepting Colin and Mary as it is about Mary finding a family. The musical’s Archie wants desperately to be a father (reading to Colin when he’s asleep) but is terrified of doing so. The book’s Archie is just depressed and absent. The book is a story about Mary finding herself, and parallels Mary and Colin growing from invalids into real people. (As Jethrien noted, this and Dickon’s age-up are likely because you can’t carry a musical with just three child actors.)
What’s more, the musical actually has a proper dramatic conflict and events that lead into one another: Neville threatens to send Mary away, so she writes to Archie, which forces his epiphany. In the book, Archie’s depression lifts randomly as Colin gets well, and then Mrs. Sowerby writes him a letter telling him to return.
I found it irritating that while the book is clearly Mary’s story, she’s practically written out of it for the final few chapters, as the story turns to Archie and then his reunion with Colin. She might as well not be there for the last third of the book, when it turns into the “Colin becomes awesome and oh wasn’t Dickon always so magical” story.
Also, the moral of the book is clearly, “If you let children run and play and explore nature, and don’t worry about them, they’ll never get sick.” And if you have a spoiled child who always throws tantrums when they don’t get their way, the best thing to do is put a second spoiled child in close proximity. (Though you may need a slightly older Magical Yorkshireman to facilitate things.)
Overall: I’m glad I read this for the sake of having read it, but the musical version is the story I love, and this…isn’t that. Norman and Simon really knew what they were doing when they adapted it.
I’m amused at how much dialogue was use word-for-word in the musical. Though I have no recollection of the name of Archie’s manor (Misselthwaite) ever appearing.
Among other things: The musical makes a moderately big deal that Lily (Archie’s wife) and Rose (Mary’s mother) were sisters, and that Mary has Lily’s eyes. Archie mentions very early in the book that Captain Lennox (Mary’s father) was Lily’s brother. (Heck, Lily—“Lilias”—doesn’t even have a name until the very end of the book!) Colin is described as having the same eyes as his mother, cobalt blue with long lashes.
Mr. Pitcher (Archie’s butler) and Dr. Craven (Archie’s poor cousin and Colin’s personal physician) seem to have been merged/expanded into Dr. Neville Craven for the musical. The book’s Dr. Craven, as we’re told, isn’t a bad person and isn’t deliberately trying to keep Colin ill; the same can’t really be said for Neville, whose treatment of Colin is somewhere between Munchausen By Proxy and straight-out revenge.
Susan Sowerby (Martha and Dickon’s mother), despite her almost-entirely offstage presence, is heaped with praise and admiration by so many characters I can’t help but wonder if she’s the author-insert character. (And she’s basically a non-entity in the musical.)
Martha tells Mary that Lily had a fall in the garden, and that’s what killed her; it’s unclear whether this induced labor or what, but she apparently died around the time Colin was born. A big deal is made of not letting Colin realize when he’s looking at that tree, but then nothing actually comes of that potential conflict.
Introductions are in a bit of a different order in the book: Ben introduces Mary to the Robin, rather than Dickon. (Dickon, who is clearly intended to be older than 12 in the musical.) Mary finds the key and the door to the secret garden (with Robin’s help) before she meets Dickon, Archie or Colin. And to the extent that Lily or any of the ghosts matter, it’s only in the last two chapters of the book.
The musical is much more clearly a story about the adults and their interactions and parallels with the children—it’s as much about Archie accepting Colin and Mary as it is about Mary finding a family. The musical’s Archie wants desperately to be a father (reading to Colin when he’s asleep) but is terrified of doing so. The book’s Archie is just depressed and absent. The book is a story about Mary finding herself, and parallels Mary and Colin growing from invalids into real people. (As Jethrien noted, this and Dickon’s age-up are likely because you can’t carry a musical with just three child actors.)
What’s more, the musical actually has a proper dramatic conflict and events that lead into one another: Neville threatens to send Mary away, so she writes to Archie, which forces his epiphany. In the book, Archie’s depression lifts randomly as Colin gets well, and then Mrs. Sowerby writes him a letter telling him to return.
I found it irritating that while the book is clearly Mary’s story, she’s practically written out of it for the final few chapters, as the story turns to Archie and then his reunion with Colin. She might as well not be there for the last third of the book, when it turns into the “Colin becomes awesome and oh wasn’t Dickon always so magical” story.
Also, the moral of the book is clearly, “If you let children run and play and explore nature, and don’t worry about them, they’ll never get sick.” And if you have a spoiled child who always throws tantrums when they don’t get their way, the best thing to do is put a second spoiled child in close proximity. (Though you may need a slightly older Magical Yorkshireman to facilitate things.)
Overall: I’m glad I read this for the sake of having read it, but the musical version is the story I love, and this…isn’t that. Norman and Simon really knew what they were doing when they adapted it.
