The Annotated Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett (Notes by Gretchen Holbrook Gerzina)

This is a book that I first read on my own when I was on vacation in Maine in about sixth grade. It's a classic children's book, and I wanted to read it again since this version is annotated with lots of different illustrations from a number of different versions of the story.

I enjoy reading annotated versions of stories that I know already because they provide lots of new and interesting information about different aspects of the story. The most interesting of these notes, to me, were the notes about Burnett's life in relation to what was happening in the story. Burnett was a strong believer in children playing outside in nature and breathing fresh air. This is how I grew up, so it was fun reading about how two of the main characters fall in love with the outside and are healed mentally, emotionally, and physically because of a secret garden that they discover. I also loved reading about the garden itself and the different plants that grew inside, since I garden as well. (It got me eager for spring time, even though winter hasn't even begun!)

Another aspect of this version that I found interesting were the illustrations that Gerzina chose to include. As we read stories, we all get pictures in our minds of the different characters. What was really cool to see were the different artists' representations of the same characters. Some versions were more developed illustrations with great detail and color, and some were in black and white and looked like sketches. The characters themselves all look very different, although they are, of course, described the same way in the text. And even though there were probably five or six different versions included in this book, none of them looked like what was in my head...

Since this story is a children's story, there is an element of magic throughout the book, and Gerzina's notes discuss this aspect in relation to the healing powers of nature. The garden itself is a wonderful, special secret, and the children are so excited by it that when I read the book, I feel like a kid again, and I can even feel some of their excitement. It makes me want to discover a garden of my own and make it a magical place. Maybe one day...