The secret garden by Martina Mantovani 3C

1. Frances Hodgson Burnett
Summa
ry…
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2. The author
Frances Hodgson
Burnett
(1849-1924)
• She was born in Manchester,England.She wrote
a lot of very popular books for children. The
Secret Garden describes how two sad,lonely
children find happiness by looking after an
abandoned garden. This very popular story was
filmed twice, in 1949 and 1993.
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3. Characters
Mary Lennox was a spoilt,unpleasant and
rude little girl. She had a thin body and a
sad face.At Misselthwaite Manor she
became a gentle and polite girl.
Colin Craven was Mary’s cousin. He
tought to be ill and to have a crooked
back. The magic of the garden made
him grow strong and healthy.
Dickon was Martha’s brother. He
was very kind and he loved animals
of the moor. He helped Mary and
Colin to become strong and healthy. 3

4. Characters
After Mrs Craven’s death, Mr Craven
became an unpleasant man. At the end,
when he saw his son, he became a happy
man and he was proud of Colin.
Martha was Mary’s housemaid. She had
a friendly voice. She was very kind.
Mrs Medlock was Mr Carven’s housekeeper
. She was very strict with Mary.
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5. Characters
Ben Weatherstaff was Mr
Craven’s gardener. He was an
unfriendly man, but at the end, he
was happy, because he saw
Colin walking in the secret
garden and he cried.
The robin was Ben Weatherstaff’s
friend. He became Mary’s friend
when he saw her in the gardens.
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6. Chapter 1
Mary Lennox was a spoilt,rude,bad
tempered little girl who complained a lot.
She lived in India,but when her parents
died during a terrible epidemic,she was
sent to live with her uncle Mr Craven,in
Yorkshire,in a big house in the moor. In
London, when she arrived, she met Mrs
Medlock, Mr Craven’s housekeeper,who
told her about her uncle: her wife was
dead and he became an unpleasant man.
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7. Chapter 2
• Next morning, Martha, a young
housemaid,awakened Mary. She told her about
her large and poor family and about her brother
Dickon, who loved animals in the moor. She also
told her about a walled garden that was locked
up. When Mary went out to look at the
gardens,she knew Ben Weatherstaff,a gardener
with a friendly robin. When the bird flew over one
wall,she found one old garden without a door…
She wanted to find its key…
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8. Chapter 3
• Every day, after dinner,Martha told Mary about
the secret garden and about Mr Craven: his wife
died when she fell from an old tree with a branch
like a seat. But one day, when Martha left Mary,
she decided to explorer the house and she
heard someone crying, but Mrs Medlock took
her in her room. The next day, with the robin,she
found a key. Then another day, she saw,under
some ivy,one door. She opened the door with
the key and she discovered the old garden.
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9. Chapter 4
• Mary worked every day in the garden. One day
she saw Dickon;he was so kind that she felt she
could trust him. So Mary took him to the garden.
That evening,she met for the first time her uncle:
Mary said she wanted a piece of garden where
she could grow flowers and Mr Craven
consented. During the night,Mary heard for the
second time someone crying and he discovered
in one room a skinny,young boy lying on a bed.
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10. Chapter 5
• The young boy was Colin, Mary’s cousin. Mr
Craven was his father.No one talked to him
because he was too afraid and he was
always ill. Mr Craven was afraid that Colin
would grow up with a crooked back. He was
born when his mother died and when Mr
Craven saw him, he felt very sad. Mary spoke
with Colin for a long time. He cried because
no one believed he would live until he grew
up but he didn’t want to die. Mary told him
about the garden but she said that she didn’t
discover it. When Colin fell asleep, she left
his room.
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11. Chapter 6
• Next morning, Mary told Martha about Colin and
Martha felt very upset. But Colin wanted to see
Mery and she went again in his room. Colin was
sad again,because he didn’t want to die and he
had a tantrum with Mary. Then she left the room
angrily. Later,when she remembered how lonely
was Colin, she decided to go and see him the
next day. During the night, Colin shouted and
cried, so Mary ran in his room to stop the terrible
noise.
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12. Chapter 7
Colin was red from crying because he tought that his
back was crooked. So Mary looked at the poor,skinny
back for a long time: it was very straight. So Colin fell
asleep quiet. In the morning Mary met Dickon and they
decided to see Colin,the next day. Then Mary in
Colin’s room, decided to talk to him about her secret:
the old garden. When Colin heard the truth, he was
very excited. Next day, for breakfast Colin and Mary
met Dickon with his animals. They went out and they
opened the secret garden’s door. That day, the world
changed for Colin, because he became very happy
and surprised. He wanted to live for ever and ever.
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13. Chapter 8
In the garden,from the top of the wall, the
children saw the gardener Ben Weatherstaff ’s
angry face looked down at them. When he saw
Colin pulled him up out of his chair and stood up
straight and tall, he was very surprised and he
started crying because he was so happy. Next
day, into the garden, Colin walked very well and
he decided to see his father without the
wheelchair: but it was a surprise.
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14. Each day,Colin and Mary made exercises to
make them stronger and soon they were
healthier and happier. Mr Craven was in
Europe and one night, he dreamed about the
garden and about his house Misselthwaite
Manor. The dream made him decide to return
home at once. When he arrived,he went to
the secret garden and he discovered his child
stood still in front of him.Colin told him how
the magic of the garden made him stronger
and healthier. The man was very proud of his
son and walked together in their happy
home!!!!!
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