Once upon a time, there was a little girl named Mary Lennox. She was an unhealthy, bad-tempered, pale little girl who loved no one and whom no one loved. She lived in India with her parents. Her father was a dashing army captain and her mother was a beautiful lady. But they had no time for Mary. Mary lived under the care of a number of native servants.
One day, there was an outbreak of cholera in the country. Everyone in the Lennox household died except Mary. She was left alone. A group of soldiers found her and left her under the care of an English clergyman and his family. After spending some time with them, Mary was sent to live in Yorkshire with her maternal uncle, Archibald Craven.
Her uncle lived in a big manor, which had more than one hundred rooms, but they all were kept closed by him. Everyone in the estate described him as ‘a miserable hunchback.’ His wife died ten years ago and from that time he had been in a constant state of grief.
Soon, Mary arrived at her uncle’s estate. Martha Sowerby, the maidservant, looked after Mary. She was a good-natured lady. One day, Martha told Mary about the secret garden. The garden belonged to late Mrs. Craven. After her death, Archibald locked the garden door and buried the key beneath the earth.
Mary became curious about the garden. She was determined to find the key and discover the secret garden. This curiosity and determination to discover something had a great impact on Mary. She became lively and got engaged with the people around her. She met Ben Weatherstaff, an old gardener, and made friends with him. She also started talking to robin, a bird who lived in the secret garden. Dickon Sowerby who loved gardening became Mary’s best friend. Dickon was a boy who could charm the animals of the moor ‘the way snake charmers charm snakes in India’. Mary called him ‘the Yorkshire Angel’.
One night, Mary heard some strange cries coming from one of the rooms of the manor. She said to Mrs Medlock, the housekeeper, “Who is crying?” “There is no one crying. You are mistaken. Go and sleep!” she replied.
The next morning, Mary continued her search for the key to the secret garden. With the help of the robin, she found the key buried under the earth. She was very happy. Mary immediately opened the door and went inside the garden. All the plants in the garden were dying.
Dickon and Mary decided to work in the garden. Dickon brought the gardening tools and they started gardening. Soon, the garden became lively. They were very happy. That night, Mary again heard someone crying. She went to find out the reason behind it. She managed to find the room and was shocked to see a boy lying on the bed crying. He was Colin Craven, Master Craven’s invalid son. He was shut in that room and was not allowed to go out. Colin was born shortly before his mother’s death. The doctors said that Colin would become a hunchback and die an early death. There were many servants who looked after him and followed his orders day in, day out.
Mary talked to Colin and they became friends. She visited him daily and told him stories. But one day, she was busy gardening with Dickon and did not visit Colin. Colin became furious and started shouting and yelling. Mary rushed to his room and told him to stop crying.
“Look Mary, I have a hunch,” he said.
Mary examined him. “There is nothing, Colin,” she replied. But Colin was not ready to believe what Mary uttered.
Mary felt that his illness was only in his mind. She thought of an idea. To get Colin rid of his illness, she brought him to the secret garden along with Dickon. But Ben Weatherstaff saw them. He was the favourite of the late Mistress Craven. He referred to Colin as ‘the poor cripple’, and said to him, “Do you have crooked legs and crooked back?” Colin became so furious by this question that he forced himself to stand up for the first time in his life. Everyone was amazed to see him. Mary was very happy. Now, Colin’s health started improving. The visits to the secret garden had a great effect on him. Mary, Colin and Dickon decided to keep this a secret. They wanted to surprise his father when he returned from the trip.
Mary, Colin and Dickon along with Ben Weatherstaff, spent every day of the summer in the secret garden. No one was allowed to enter into the secret garden except them and Dickon’s saintly mother, Susan Sowerby. One day, Susan wrote a letter to Master Craven, and asked him to come back home soon and look at his son. To keep the surprise, she did not tell him about Colin’s secret. Master Craven read the letter and immediately came back home. While on his way, he had a dream in which his late wife told him to go to the secret garden in the afternoon.
Upon reaching home, Master Craven went towards the secret garden. As soon as he laid his hand on the doorknob, Colin came rushing and fell into his arms. Master Craven’s happiness knew no bounds. Father and son were reunited and the miracle of Colin’s recovery was revealed.
