Author: Ivy Nicole Weir and Amber Padilla
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company, 2021 (Paperback)
Length: 250 pages
Genre: Children's/Young Adult; Graphic Novel, Classic
Started: December 8, 2021
Finished: December 8, 2021
Summary:
From the back of the book:
Celebrate 110 years of Frances Hodgson Burnett's The Secret Garden with this vibrant, contemporary graphic novel retelling!
Video games and tech are loner Mary Lennox's main source of entertainment and "friends" in her Silicon Valley home. But when her parents are killed in a tragic accident, Mary's life is uprooted to New York City to live with an uncle she barely knows and, to her surprise, keeps a gadget-free home. Looking for comfort in this strange, new reality, Mary discovers an abandoned rooftop garden and an even bigger secret in an upstairs bedroom: her cousin, Colin, who struggles with anxiety. With Colin's help and that of a new friend named Dickon, Mary works to restore the garden to its former glory while also learning to grieve, build real friendships, and nurture growth - both in nature and in herself.
Review:
The Secret Garden was my favourite classic children's book growing up (plus I had the benefit of the gorgeous 90s movie version coming out around the same time as I was reading it), so I was instantly drawn to this one.
I've always wondered how to properly update classic stories like this for a modern audience (especially considering the colonialism usually present in stories written by British authors from the time) while also addressing issues that modern children would be less likely to understand, like how Colin in the original book could've been bed-ridden and unable to walk due to a suspected illness he didn't even have. This retelling not only addresses those concerns and creates a successful transition to a modern setting, it also retains the message of the original quite well.
Mary Lennox is the child of workaholic parents in the tech sector in Silicon Valley. She attends school online, gets all her food delivered, and barely gets to interact with her parents at all. When her parents die in a car crash, a surprisingly unemotional Mary is taken to New York City to live with her uncle Archie, his assistant Mrs. Medlock, and their tenant, Martha. Since her uncle doesn't keep a lot of technology in his home, Martha routinely kicks Mary out of the house to go to the nearby museums and galleries. On one of these trips outside, Mary meets a cat named Robin who belongs to Ben, the owner of the local bodega and friend of her uncle and his late husband, Masahiro. Mary learns about Masahiro's passion for plants and gardening, and his rooftop garden that Archie shut away after his husband's death. With the help of Ben and Martha's little brother, Dickon, Mary takes on the task of bringing the garden back to life, discovering the existence of her cousin Colin along the way.
I always liked how The Secret Garden talks about grief, loss, and healing in a way that kids can understand, and that message isn't lost in this retelling, in fact, I think this edition handles it even better than the original did. Both Mary and Colin are profoundly affected by parental death. Mary can't properly grieve the loss of parents she didn't feel close to, but craves unconditional familial love. Colin is traumatized by witnessing the death of his father, Masahiro, in his garden, and suffers from panic attacks if he tries to leave his room since his idea of a "safe space" has been upended. The adults in the story are cognizant of the trauma of both children and are highly attuned to giving them what they need to begin to recover and rebuild their lives, and they talk about things with the kids in an honest way that they can understand. It makes for a wonderfully emotionally intelligent story. This is especially prevalent when Mary witnesses Colin having a panic attack and responds poorly to it, to which Colin's therapist meets with Mary to explain what he's going through in a way that Mary can understand to allow her to be more sympathetic to her cousin's needs.
I also love how diverse this retelling is in so many ways. Mary is biracial, Archie and Colin are black, Masahiro is Japanese, Ben is hispanic, and Martha is drawn with a larger body shape. There's also the nice LGBTQ family portrayal of Archie, Masahiro, and Colin. Even Mrs. Medlock has been softened here and, while still protective of Colin, her motivations are much more understandable and relatable.
Recommendation:
A wonderful modern retelling brimming with emotion, empathy, and diverse portrayals. Definitely worth the read if you want to introduce this story to a younger generation of readers.
Thoughts on the cover:
Nice showcase of the art style, and the colour palette is pleasing.
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