This was the storybook my mother used to read to me before bed. It was our nightly ritual. The illustrations of Tasha Tudor filled my dreams, and were a very special part of my childhood. Through this book I learned such timless classics as; Hansel and Gretel, The Frog Prince, and Billy Goats Gruff. I treasure my copy to this day. Share this timeless classic with someone you love.

I had this book when I was a child. I used to spend what seemed like hours staring at Tasha Tudor's beautiful illustrations. I recently found my copy in my parent's attic, but it was water- logged and completely destroyed. This book meant so much to me as a child. The pictures are gorgeous and evoke vivid daydreams. This book would be a very cherishable heirloom.

I was overjoyed to browse this book - all my favorite carols, in the old style, with Tasha Tudor's charming illustrations. Such a shame it is out-of-print!! Rarely does one find the full music for "We Three Kings of Orient Are", or read the story behind the favorite "Good King Wenceslas". As welcome as Christmas cookies at the door, brought by an old friend.

I was very, very disappointed in the lack of color in the newest addition. They are such washed out prints when compared to the original book. ...

My mother owned a first printing copy of this book, and I can remember reading it all my life. I was thrilled when I discovered that my mother kept the book all these years, and I was also next to tears when she told me I could keep it, along with the numbers and alphabet books of Tudor's that she had. This book is a celebration of the memories of a happy childhood, and it's appropriate that it was such a huge part of mine. I'm buying a new copy of this book for the children I hope to one day have, while my mom's copy is going to be locked away somewhere safe. This is a truly, thoroughly beautiful book, and one that every family should own.

This delightful book of holidays begins when a little girl asks, "Granny, what was it like when Mummy was me?" Tasha Tudor goes on to treat us to a year's worth of wonderful holiday traditions from her life in New England. Charming quotations from literature open each month and herbaceous borders surround each page of nostalgic illustrations depicting myriad family celebrations. The borders start with brown and frozen grasses and flowers festooned with icicles that bud on subsequent pages and send out catkins, then blossoms, then flowers and leaves, then fruits, all in splendid realistic detail. The pictures invite one warmly into the fun and rekindle one's own memories. Tasha reminds us of the delicious foods, the antics of the children, the activities and games, the decorations, the weather, the homespun plays and puppet shows, and the joyful seasonal work. We see big families caught up in living through the wonders of the wheel of the year. Holidays are depicted as the accents to each season, but equally important are the birthdays, the county fairs, cider and maple syrup making time. The people and animals from Tasha Tudor's own experience grace these lovely pages and offer us a glimpse into lives that are filled with love and wonder and appreciation for the beautiful and gentle nuances of living the good life. Simplicity and tradition make the holidays magical and we can all take our cue from this wonderful book and re-examine how we celebrate our traditional holidays. Co-operation and sharing the workload seems to have eliminated stress in these pictures. Creativity and family participation take the place of materialism. Home crafts and delightful cooking and a visible delight in children seem to have banished excessive "partying" and keep the focus on love, comfort, and gratitude. This book is such a treat and it is virtually guaranteed to help put whatever holidays you celebrate into thoughtful perspective.

Title: A Little Princess
By: Frances Hodgson Burnett
Reviewed By: ...
Period: 4

There is a young girl named Sara. She is a very smart, kind and clever girl. Sara likes to read books and imagine things. Her father had to go off in India for a job so he left Sara at a school. They were a very rich family. Sara always wore the fancy clothes and she got everything she desired. At the school, everyone always looked at her. She made some friends but very few. A few Years later, her father dies. She becomes a poor, dirty maid who cleans at the school. She still has contact with her friends but very few. She met a neighbor that just moved in. It turns out that he is looking for her because he was a close friend of her dad. The neighbor doesn't know that Sara is the girl at the school next door.
Later on they meet, and Sara's life becomes a lot better.
I liked this book because it kept making me want to read on. I didn't want to stop. It was such a interesting book. I've never read a book like this one. It's so fun how she is very happy at first and then sad later on. " Nobody but Sara herself ever knew what had happened in her room after she had ran upstairs and locked the door. In fact, she herself scarcely remembered anything but that she walked up and down, saying over and over again to herself in a voice which did not seem her own: 'My Papa is dead! My papa is dead!'" That was the sad part.
This book always made me think about how nice of a girl Sara was and what a kind heart she had. I was crying when she had become a poor, maid after her father died and left no money. She always cared for others and was an excellent student at school. "'Ah, Madam, ' he said, ' there is not much I can teach her. She has not learned french; she IS french. He accent is exquisite." That is what her french teacher told The head mistress.(She is very smart)
My favorite part of the book is when she meets friends. Although she had kind ways to talk to people, she always met people in a strange way. For instance, when she met one of her friends, Lottie,it was when Lottie was crying. Lottie was screaming out that she had no mother. Sara never really met her mother. Then, Sara offered to be her adopted mother.I thought that was strange but nice of her. It stopped Lottie from crying so hard and she became very close friends with her. That is what I liked about the book.

This has got to be one of my favourite movies. I'm the type of person who loves orphan stories such as The Secret Garden, Annie, etc. But this one touched me like no other. It's about a little girl named Sarah who loves storytelling. She hasn't any brothers or sisters, nor a mother, so she just has one father whom she loves more than anyone. They both live together in India. Then her father is called to battle, and Sarah is sent to a boarding school in New York, where her mother used to attend as a girl. When her father is killed in battle and there's no one to pay for Sarah's school fees, the cruel headmistress forces Sarah into a life of poverty. She quickly befriends the other servant girl whose name is Becky, and somehow manages to live through the hardships that come her way. The ending just blew me away. The ending isn't the same as the book, because this movie is only based on the book, not a recreation. But all the same, you'll love it. The perfect family movie, and a great movie to introduce not only girls-but boys also-to the world of poverty children in England used to suffer.

This book was a favorite of mine in my childhood, and, when I returned as an adult to re-read it to my own daughter, I discovered it all over again.

This is a story about a different kind of princess than one might imagine; a princess that is an orphan - lonely, cold, hungry and abused. Sara Crewe begins life as the beloved, pampered daughter of a rich man. When he dies a pauper, she is thrown on the non-existent mercy of her small-minded, mercenary boarding school mistress. Stripped of all her belongings but for one set of clothes and a doll, Sara becomes a servant of the household. Hated by the schoolmistress for her independent spirit, Sara becomes a pariah in the household, with only a few secretly loyal friends. But through her inner integrity and strength of will, Sara Crewe maintains the deportment, inner nobility and generous spirit of a "real" princess.

It is a fabulous story of the triumph of human will, and good over evil.

This story is a real classic, and needs no re-writing to be as enjoyable and readable today as it ever was. Ask my 8-year-old daughter, who has already re-read it twice. Accept no substitutes, re-writes, abridgements or copies! This is a work of art, and should not be tampered with.

My daughter recently read this book and liked it, like me she is a cat lover. I found the story charming, and of course it has a happy ending, being wrote for 4-8 year olds, however, I thought it should have been a couple of pages longer, at least. But overall, this book is worth the money. If you want another book of cats and Christmas, check out CHRISTMAS CATS, by Lesley Anne Ivory, this is a book of her paintings combined with little stories about cats and Christmas, for older children and adults.

This is one of those books that, after picking it up at a friend's house, I had to have. I'm a longtime fan of Tasha Tudor's heartwarming illustrations, and here she does what she does best: animals, children and Christmas. Her daughter Efner, born to the tradition, gives us a charming tale of a little gray cat, lost and abandoned in a blizzard, and the Christmas magic that brings him into the lives of two children. A terrific book for children of any age, or adult cat-lovers like me!

The Secret Garden by Francis Hodgson Burnett is about a girl, Mary Lennox, who has spent her entire life in India. When her parents encounter a strange and mysterious illness that leads to death, Mary must move to England and stay there with her uncle, whom she's never seen or met before. Strange things are going on at Misselthwait Manor, like a garden that's locked up for an unknown reason, and a strange crying sound in the middle of the night. I enjoyed this book a lot because Ms. Burnett made the characters seem real, the plot exciting, and the ordinary seem unordinary.
Francis Hodgson Burnett made the characters in The Secret Garden seem real to me because of the description. For example, this is what she has to say about Mary, first thing on the first page, right after you open the book. "When Mary Lennox was sent to Misselthwait Manor to live with her uncle everybody said she was the most disagreeable-looking child ever seen. It was true, too. She had a little thin face and a little thin body, thin light hair and a sour expression. Her hair was yellow, and her face was yellow because she had been born in India and had always been ill in one way or another." Can't you just picture Mary in your head? Ms. Burnett describes all her characters so well you can see them, and are positive that you have met that person before, no matter if they are mentioned just once, or on every page.
The plot of The Secret Garden is exciting because there are lots of different things going on at once. To illustrate, Mary is trying to get into the locked garden. She's also trying to make friends with Colin, her disabled cousin, and to adjust to life in England with her uncle and no parents. If I had that many things going on in my life, it certainly wouldn't be boring!
In The Secret Garden, Ms. Burnett makes the ordinary seem unordinary in many ways. One way is that everything is seen through the eyes of a disagreeable, spoiled, ten-year-old girl. I'm not very much older than ten myself, but I don't think that wandering around in a huge old house on a rainy day is exciting, but through Mary's eyes it is. In addition to that, Ms. Burnett makes the ordinary seem unordinary by combining unusual character traits. Take Mary's uncle for example. He's a mean old man with a crooked back, and he's married. Alone, those two things are perfectly normal seen every day, but you don't expect to see those two things together when someone's being described.
An exciting plot, the unordinary turned ordinary, and very realistic characters are my favorite things about The Secret Garden. In reality, the whole book is a treasure to cherish. If you've never read this book, you really should. If you've only read it once, read The Secret Garden again and again. I know I will.

Like most classics of children's literature, "The Secret Garden: deals with very human emotions: love, apathy, fear, trust. The author has woven a very real tale about people that change due to their interactions with each other.

The central character, Mary, undergoes a transformation that she, in turn, causes her cousin to do, likewise. Both children begin to see that the world is not centered on them and they hold their own "keys" to unlocking the wonders of life. This growth is an essential element in the story.

Even the supporting characters play an important part in the telling of the story. Mrs. Medlock is comparable to all the servants that Mary has had in the past - those that just did as they were told. Martha's friendliness was instrumental in the charges in Mary's personality. Dickon sparked in Mary her first "crush." Uncle Archibald represented Mary's distant parents.

The story effectively transports the reader to the dark English moors with its constantly rainy days. The immensity of Misselthwaite Manor is described in great detail.

Language of the characters ranged from the learned diction of Mary and her uncle to the "common" tongue of Martha, Ben, and Dickon. It is quite amusing to read the different accents and phrasings.

The highlight of the story is when Colin's ability to walk is revealed to his father. This very emotional event is handled with compassion and delicacy. The reader can visualize the expression on the father's face as he sees his son stand for the first time.

The true "secret" of the garden is not in the foliage that grows within; it is that one's life can blossom if there is caring and faith to help it grow.

I'm well known for swiping my two daughters school books especially if they're classics as was this book. Of course, I read it when I was younger and the thrill of seeing my girls reading the same book made me want to read this wonderful book again. It's a wonderful story about a young girl, Mary, who becomes an orphan while living in India with her parents so she is sent to her Uncle's manor on the Yorkshire hills in England. She starts to ramble around the big old house and soon discovers her sickly cousin, Colin, who is being fussed over and treated like an invalid by the servant. Without spoiling the story for you, they find a secret garden, which is an absolute mess. Overgrown and unkempt for many years. The garden was once tended by Mister Craven's wife (Colin's mother) who has since passed on. The story revolves around the children's adventures in the garden and amazing things start to happen. Colin finally walks without the aid of his wheelchair and Mister Craven makes a sudden trip home to the manor only to find the children in the garden. He has been extremely down and his heart broken since his wife died which is why he had locked the garden as his wife was the only one who tended it. The story is very deep and is actually a story of healing, joy, tears and finally facing ones obstacles. All stemming from an overgrown garden! Well, that has always been the way I've envisioned this story. But please read it for yourself and make your own judgment.

I was disappointed in the books contents. Although I expected an extensive bibliography (which is very thorough and interesting), I was hoping for a more inclusive book of her life, art, illustrations, etc. I expected a more "colorful" book with more pictures of both her and her work.

The authors spent nearly 15 years of their life researching and interviewing Tasha Tudor, her students, associates, and family members. This book was ultimately sanctioned by Tasha Tudor and it is a bibliography and not a biography.

Just for the record, a bibliography is "the history, identification, or description of writings or publications." A biography is a "written history of a person's life."

The Hare's are to be commended for their tireless efforts in creating the ultimate compendium of the identification of Tasha Tudor's works, writings, and publications.

Anyone still confused about the difference between a bibliography and a biography should consult their dictionary for a clarification.

An excellent and scholarly work not to be missed by Tasha Tudor aficionados, researchers, or students of her work.

The first and only scholarly treatment of the life and work of this beloved author and illustrator of children's books, "Tasha Tudor: The Direction of Her Dreams" invites us into the unique world of a unique woman and encourages us to linger. The book is a tribute not only to Tasha Tudor but also to the authors who, obviously, know her work as few of the rest of us do.

Everyone knows Robert Louis Stevenson; everyone has at least one of the myriad books of his poetry. There are some stunningly illustrated collections of his poetry out now, notably two by Thomas Kincaide, among others. But how many of us have actually read all or most of his work? I'm guilty as charged.

This smaller, quieter version of Stevenson's poetry helped me finally, actually read all the Garden poetry. True, the illustrations are spare, but delightfully accurate. My children (7 and 10) were not as mesmerized by this book as they are by others with fanciful graphics, illustrations and larger type to accompany the poetry.

Still, this small book found its way into my purse to be used for waiting moments, e.g. at the orthodontist, doctor, and also to my bedside, where it's shear diminutive size did not dissuade me from reading "for only a minute or two." And within Stevenson's words and language lie the ferment of creative pictures. I liked to have my children close their eyes while I read short poems to 'force' them to use only their mind's eye.

I thoroughly enjoyed the adventures, moods, and images Stevenson conjures and at long last can understand why his poetry remains so classic.

When I was younger, well 5 actually, I had the chicken pox. This was one of my mom's favorite books. The words in the poetry just soothed me. It seemed like the author, Robert Louis Stevenson, knew exactly what I was going through.

You can't forget about the little toy soldiers (a poem) at your feet because when you are sick for days, you can imagine all kinds of things in your mind. The curtains billow like sails, the bedpost is your anchor. I sat there in bed and just floated away with the fun of having someone to share my illness. It seemed like a had a friend right there with me.

I loved the pictures too. The little kids are old fashioned and it made me laugh because the boys wore silly clothes, but they fit the time period, my mom said.

I love this book and keep it by my bed when I need to be relaxed.

Hayley Cohen

Most everyone knows that Robert Louis Stevenson was sickly, both as a child and as an adult, and the happy result for the reading public was his nearly feverish flights of imagination. Here, in an edition of his classic "A Child's Garden of Verses," that fever is complemented in spades by the fantastical illustrations of English artist Joanna Isles.

Isles uses an arsenal of utterly frivolous flowers, borders, insects, birds, kings and queens, fairies, and more to expand upon the imagination exhibited in Stevenson's poems. The children in these pictures are depicted as being in charge, being at one with their environment, and being delighted to be alive.

Some of the illustrations hint at the influence of artists more famed than Isles (Henri Rousseau appears to be a special favorite of hers--see the illustration for "The Unseen Playmate," in which a boy lies down in weeds that might have sprung from the edge of Rousseau's painting "The Dream"). Using both primary colors and pastels, Isles creates a world within the world of Stevenson's verse. The marriage of the two is a happy one.

Don't get me wrong - this version of The Secret Garden isn't the Worst Movie of All Time - but it has serious problems having mostly to do with the ending.

I usually hate spoiler reviews that give away the ending of a movie, but I am going to do that here, for reasons I hope you'll understand, as the epilogue affects the whole spirit of the film.
(SPOILERS AHEAD)

Frances Hodgson Burnett, the author of the original classic novel, cut the story off before the three main characters grew up - a wise decision that let the readers make up their own minds about what happened next. Unlike other versions, this movie includes an epilogue that reveals what happened to them - always a dangerous decision when one doesn't have the last words from the author herself, but here disasterous.

Years later, we meet up with an engaged-to-be-married Mary and Colin. To deal with the somewhat reasonable notion that this might be a bit unlikely with Dickon around, our Yorkshire Angel has been killed off in World War Two. Anyone who knows the story and what Dickon represents understands how outrageous this is. Apparently Hodgson Burnett knew what she was doing the first time around.

Stick with either the 1993 or 1940 versions, preferably in that order, unless you're a Secret Garden fanatic who wants all three versions.

I have been a fan of the book _The Secret Garden_ since the first time I read it in grade school. I read the book a minimum of once a year - probably for 12 years. I was really disappointed in several versions of the movie I have seen. They either added weird scenes that were not true to the book or left out too many details for my liking. I know that I can't expect movies to stay entirely true to books - particularly when modern Hollywood makes a movie out of a children's literature classic... but this is absolutely the best version of the story I have ever seen as a movie.

I only gave it 4 out of 5 stars because they made a strange frame around the story - with Mary coming back to the Manor after the war and flashing back to the whole story. That in itself is fine -- but for some reason at the beginning a cat jumps out at her (and then instantly the flashback begins), why??? And at the end Colin comes and meets her in her garden and proposes... aren't they COUSINS?

Little spoiled Mary Lennox is orphaned in India and sent to live with a distant relative. Alone and scared she has to learn the English way of life. Martha her maid teaches her how to dress herself, and gives her a jump rope opening up a whole new world to Mary. The gardens of the 100 room mansion. Here she meets the head gardener and learns of the Secret Garden. Mary also finds that there are many other secrets in this house, her hunchback caretaker that seems so sad, and the crying at night.

The setting of Yorkshire England and the rich cast of characters including the maid Martha, Dicken, Martha's brother, and many others make this a wonderful book for all ages. I have read the secret garden hundreds of times and each time I get something new out of the book. It's a true classic.