Well April has arrived and that means Spring cleaning... maybe if you like that sort of thing. Or are you more of a chilled back and "It'll wait" kind of hobbit? Either way, it's the time of year when things begin to bloom, lambs are born, and baby animals are spotted around here and there.
Now I demanded to do this month's tale and I took over the hobbit library, finding a book that I'd never read before. It's about a girl who brings a garden back to life as well as changes the lives of those around her. It's an English Classic and it appears that I am the first Hobbit sister to read the book.
I'm talking about The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett. The book centres around 10-year-old Mary Lennox who lives in India until a cholera outbreak leaves her an orphan, and the servants flee, leaving her behind. Mary is completely forgotten in the chaos of the outbreak. Now, at this point, she's a spoilt child who misses her parents despite hardly seeing them. I can't begin to imagine what Mary went through... not knowing if anyone was going to ever come back for her. She grows hungry and I can't imagine what that was like either. I felt so sorry for her at that moment in time. Yes, she's spoilt and selfish but she's also 10-years-old and now an orphan left behind without a clue about anything.
She's found, I'm relieved to say, and ends up at Misselthwaite Manor with her uncle, Archibold Craven, who lost his wife 10 years previously. He doesn't want to see Mary at all and the only person Mary really sees is her maid, Martha. The two begin to trust each other and, eventually, Martha opens up about Mary's aunt Lilias' death. Martha teaches Mary things that she should already know, like how to dress herself, and reveals that there is a garden at Misselthwaite that is locked away because Lilias' death was caused by an accident in the garden. It is a welcome moment for Mary as change begins to happen.
I love the change the garden brings to Mary. Her ways begin to change, and she begins to soften. Her desire to find the garden is only increased when she meets Ben Weatherstaff, a gardener ofMisselthwaite Manor, and a friendly robin redbreast. She begins to show an interest in gardening and learning about flowers and seeds. Eventually, the robin helps Mary to find the key. It feels, to me, like a magic moment as it's like Mary can talk to animals. I think that would be great to a certain point because you could understand and help animals but, at the same time, I think it would be annoying soon enough unless there was a way to switch them off.
I have just reached the point where Mary has found the garden, started working on it, met Dickon, who is Martha's brother and has met her hidden cousin Colin. Now Colin's story is interesting, and he starts off as the bedbound son of Archibold and Lilias but begins to change himself as he meets Mary. Martha finds out and is terrified of losing her job, but Colin uses his position to exert power and make everyone allow Mary to see him. I love the way Colin used who he was for good seeing that Mary was beginning to make an impression on him as well.
That's as far as I've read up to in the story before remembering that I wanted to tell everyone about it. I am looking forwards to seeing how the story ends... if Mary manages to save the garden and Colin and if her uncle begins to care about her the way he should rather than have nothing to do with her.
That's all from me this month.
Lots of love,
Ellieanarose xx