Uploaded February 2015 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
This is a quick book summary of The Secret Garden by Frances Burnett. This channel discusses and reviews books, novels, and short stories through drawing...poorly.
Transcript: This is a story about a spoiled English girl named Mary who grows up in India with her mother and father. Her parents ignore her, so her Ayah, or nanny, mostly takes care of her. However, cholera begins infecting the people of the house, killing nearly everyone except Mary.
Mary is then taken to live with her uncle, Archibald Craven, a lonely man who lives in a large mansion near a moor and travels often. Mary is instructed to stay in her room by the headmistress, Mrs. Medlock. Mary meets Martha, a servant girl with a thick Yorkshire accent. Mary expects that Martha will do everything for her, but Martha tells her that she has to learn to do things by herself.
Mary is bored of the mansion since there is no one around. She explores the surrounding gardens and discovers a secret garden with no entrance. She learns that her uncle used to go there often with his wife, but since her death many years ago, he’s locked it up, buried the key, and doesn’t allow anyone to talk about it.
Mary befriends a red robin, who leads her to a buried key.
Mary and Martha become friends as they learn more about each other. Martha even buys Mary a jump rope as a gift.
As Mary is skipping rope, the robin leads her to the hidden door to the secret garden and Mary uses the key to enter the garden.
Mary discovers that the garden is wild and unkept, but there are still signs of life. She asks a groundskeeper, Ben Weatherstaff, about tools and gardening practices so she can work in the garden in secret.
Mary buys gardening tools through Dickon, Martha’s brother, who loves animals and knows a lot about nature and the moor. Dickon and Mary talk and Mary grows to admire Dickon for his closeness to nature and free spirit.
Mary opens up about the secret garden to Dickon and soon they both start working the ground together.
One night, Mary hears some crying and she investigates the source. She discovers a young boy named Colin, Mr. Craven’s son and her cousin. Colin is afraid that he’s growing a hump on his back and that he’ll die. And because he’s believed this lie his entire life, he is afraid to go outside and talk to people.
Mary and Colin get along and Colin enjoys her company. They talk often, however, Colin gets jealous of Mary spending time with Dickon and they have a fight. Mary leaves upset and later yells at Colin, which gets him to stop feeling sorry for himself.
Mary and Dickon plan on taking Colin to the secret garden and Colin grows excited. Colin is wheeled out into the garden and is amazed by the plants and open air. However, Ben sees the children in the garden and yells at them. Colin, being the head of the house, tells Ben that they must not be disturbed in the garden and that Ben must now keep it a secret.
Over time, Colin goes to the garden with Mary and Dickon, and he gets stronger and more healthy. He practices walking out of his wheelchair and is excited to show his father when he returns.
In the end, Mr. Craven returns home and sees Colin running and healthy.
Facebook Page - facebook.com/pages/Minute-Book-Reports/1148331925195691
Paper by Fifty Three was used to make this video.
Music: Malmo Sunrise from the Youtube Audio Library.
This is a quick book summary of The Secret Garden by Frances Burnett. This channel discusses and reviews books, novels, and short stories through drawing...poorly.
Transcript: This is a story about a spoiled English girl named Mary who grows up in India with her mother and father. Her parents ignore her, so her Ayah, or nanny, mostly takes care of her. However, cholera begins infecting the people of the house, killing nearly everyone except Mary.
Mary is then taken to live with her uncle, Archibald Craven, a lonely man who lives in a large mansion near a moor and travels often. Mary is instructed to stay in her room by the headmistress, Mrs. Medlock. Mary meets Martha, a servant girl with a thick Yorkshire accent. Mary expects that Martha will do everything for her, but Martha tells her that she has to learn to do things by herself.
Mary is bored of the mansion since there is no one around. She explores the surrounding gardens and discovers a secret garden with no entrance. She learns that her uncle used to go there often with his wife, but since her death many years ago, he’s locked it up, buried the key, and doesn’t allow anyone to talk about it.
Mary befriends a red robin, who leads her to a buried key.
Mary and Martha become friends as they learn more about each other. Martha even buys Mary a jump rope as a gift.
As Mary is skipping rope, the robin leads her to the hidden door to the secret garden and Mary uses the key to enter the garden.
Mary discovers that the garden is wild and unkept, but there are still signs of life. She asks a groundskeeper, Ben Weatherstaff, about tools and gardening practices so she can work in the garden in secret.
Mary buys gardening tools through Dickon, Martha’s brother, who loves animals and knows a lot about nature and the moor. Dickon and Mary talk and Mary grows to admire Dickon for his closeness to nature and free spirit.
Mary opens up about the secret garden to Dickon and soon they both start working the ground together.
One night, Mary hears some crying and she investigates the source. She discovers a young boy named Colin, Mr. Craven’s son and her cousin. Colin is afraid that he’s growing a hump on his back and that he’ll die. And because he’s believed this lie his entire life, he is afraid to go outside and talk to people.
Mary and Colin get along and Colin enjoys her company. They talk often, however, Colin gets jealous of Mary spending time with Dickon and they have a fight. Mary leaves upset and later yells at Colin, which gets him to stop feeling sorry for himself.
Mary and Dickon plan on taking Colin to the secret garden and Colin grows excited. Colin is wheeled out into the garden and is amazed by the plants and open air. However, Ben sees the children in the garden and yells at them. Colin, being the head of the house, tells Ben that they must not be disturbed in the garden and that Ben must now keep it a secret.
Over time, Colin goes to the garden with Mary and Dickon, and he gets stronger and more healthy. He practices walking out of his wheelchair and is excited to show his father when he returns.
In the end, Mr. Craven returns home and sees Colin running and healthy.
Facebook Page - facebook.com/pages/Minute-Book-Reports/1148331925195691
Paper by Fifty Three was used to make this video.
Music: Malmo Sunrise from the Youtube Audio Library.
