This is a fun graphic novel of The Secret Garden, one of my favorite classics! It certainly isn't the same as the original book, however, it does contain a lot of pictures and simplified text, so it would be a nice option for children, especially if concentrating on text without pictures is difficult. Being a favorite, I really enjoyed taking it in in a new way as well. The text stays pretty close to the story, just simplified. The graphics are cute, but muted, which is on trend with current illustrations, and I usually love, though I wouldn't have minded more color for the gardens. Overall, I thought this was great!

What a lovely way to revisit a childhood favorite! And a delightful way to introduce it to a new audience. The illustrations are suitably dour or radiant as the mood dictates, but the story is a bit confusing at times due to a lack of transitions in places. The information at the end of the book puts it into context and reminds us that history repeats itself. The book's message is timely even today.

This was a beautifully done version of the secret garden. The illustrations were sweet and the color palette was so gorgeous. I liked the way the story emphasized connection and friendship even more so through this illustrated version. Absolutely stunning!

I want to thank Netgalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for giving me a chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

First of all, I haven't read the original book of The Secret Garden until i've tried this graphic novel. But it didn't stop me from falling in love with this book. I love the art style and it really suits to the theme of the story. If a child or early teenagers read this graphic novel I think they will also fall in love with the illustrations and everything. This book feels like giving me a warm embrace as I read further into the story. It makes my heart warm and I loved that.

This book talks about the little things in life that most people just overlooked and it made me appreciate those little things. It has message that is telling me that even just growing a flower, it is still magic.

As for Mary, the main character, I liked her defiance and stubborness, and I must tell you that it's not annoying. It's actually makes her character adorable to read. She is also curious and brave despite being an orphan. Over the cast of characters, I love each of their character developments. It's a little fast but still understandable since this is a graphic novel.

Overall, I rated this book 4.5 out of 5 stars. I totally recommend this to readers of all ages. And I feel like this is the perfect book for children who you would like to get into reading. But even though you're an adult (like me) it still enjoyable to read and helps you find magic even in the little things.

Super cute illustrations and an abridged story make this adaptation ideal for middle grade readers and anyone interested in Burnett's classic novel.

Recommended for: middle grade+ readers

I received a digital ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Secret Garden is the first book that read when I was a child and I was very excited to read the comic. The reading was pleasant, but I didn't feel the expected emotion and nostalgia. I felt that the story was too fast and it got a little confusing.

*Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for the digital ARC of this graphic novel for review purposes!*

First off, The Secret Garden is one of my favorite books of all time as well as one of my favorite movies, so I was quite excited going into this. I liked quite a few things about this graphic novel, but some things definitely fell short. First, the illustrations are incredibly cute and have the perfect touch of magic to them. The garden is beautifully depicted and has so many whimsical touches. The characters also seemed true to the original, and my favorite storylines from the original are part of the graphic novel. I especially loved Dickon, he’s every bit of magical as he should be. I also thought that excluding the India/colonizer storyline was a good choice. It’s one of the parts that doesn’t really fit into the magic of the original (at least for me).

Now for the negatives. It was honestly just too short. The story seems too shallow and surface-level and as a result, it lacks a lot of the charm of the original. This graphic novel might be fine for a really young reader, but while it was very cute, it seemed to jump too quickly to the next scene in order to summarize what happens in the book. We also don’t get enough of the growth of the characters in this version. Mary’s growth in the original book is so beautiful and parallels the growth of the garden, and I missed seeing that here. The magic of the garden is kinda there, but I would have loved to see more of it. Maybe if we would have gotten more description instead of just short dialogue?

Overall, a fairly good graphic novelization of the story, but doesn’t quite capture the magic of the original.

The Secret Garden is such a magical classic. The illustrations in this version are magnificent. They paint a picture better than my imagination ever could. So grateful for the chance to re-experience this classic in a new light.

The classic novel of The Secret Novel turned into a stunning, beautiful graphic novel. The art style was simple but beautiful. It was very fast-paced leaving details out from the actual novel, however, the idea was still there.

This was lovely! I haven't read the Secret Garden in awhile, and reading this graphic novel makes me feel a tad nostalgic. I also really enjoy the art- I love how the illustrator depicts the flora and fauna. It's so beautiful!

Thanks for the ARC, NetGalley!

An endearing graphic novel adaptation of "The Secret Garden" by Frances Hodgson Burnett. The art was cute and the story was a bit rushed, but overall it was a fun, little read that is perfect for young readers.

4.5 // This book was adorable! The setting was ethereal, the art was gorgeous and fitting for the story, and of course the story of the Secret Garden was captivating, This book can easily be enjoyed by all age groups, however it particularly succeeds in making a classic with older English more palatable to younger audiences. I recommend this to anyone looking for a quick, and atmospheric read!

I'm going to preface this review with the fact that I have never read The Secret Garden prior to this graphic novel and I think this is a great way to introduce people to the story.

This was such a quick, easy read filled with illustrations that whisk you away from reality. At first, I wasn't sure about the dreary illustrations toward the beginning of the novel but after seeing the colorful garden I realized it was intentional and very well done. As someone who is still relatively new to the graphic novel genre there were some pages with so many panels that I was unsure of the reading order but I think that says more about me than the book itself.

If you're looking for a whimsical, nostalgic graphic novel this is for you.

3.5 stars
I read this book (the regular edition, not the graphic novel) for the first time last year. It was very fun to see it come alive in a graphic novel.
The artwork was cute and childish (but in a good way, as several of the characters are children). The landscapes and garden full page pictures were absolutely beautiful. There were little sparkles around some of the animals sometimes and it was a really cute addition.
The characters themselves however (besides Dickon) are such brats at the beginning/middle and honestly it was just annoying. Same as in the actual book form, so it's nothing to do with the graphic novel itself. Yes, they do come around and become a team to spruce up the secret garden, but they are so mean to the people living in the house!
I would definitely recommend this graphic novel if you enjoyed the classic to see it come alive on the page, or even if you haven't read it before!

This graphic novel by Mariah Marsden and Hannah Luechtefeld was beautifully illustrated. The artwork was whimsical and even had a fantastical element and added a great layer to a classic children’s novel. Overall, a fun read that I would recommend to any fan of this childhood favorite. A quick an enjoyable read, although at times it did feel limiting with dialogue and discussion, although that may be purposeful to be inclusive for readers at any age.

Thank you NetGalley for providing an ARC.

i couldn't resist when i saw this on netgalley because i so enjoyed mariah's anne of gg graphic novel - i know the secret garden story probably from the movie because i don't think i've ever actually read the book (oops). so maybe i should have read the book first to really enjoy or understand it, but... meh. i still will read the book sometime this year, but i think this was perfectly enjoyable without having read the classic (or it having been *years* since i've seen the movie). i really like the art as well, but i knew i would going in because of anne of gg. i thought this was really well done and i did enjoy it.

I think this is a good rendition of 'The Secret Garden". The illustrations I felt left a little something to be desired, but I think this is a lovely way for many children to get the feel of a classic without having to divulge into the whole classic. I think it will be good for struggling readers also who want to read a classic story like this.

Thanks NetGalley for this ARC!

The Secret Garden was one of the first classic novels I read when I was younger and is definitely one of my favorites. This graphic novel isn't as detailed as the book itself but I feel like it really manages to capture the main characters well. However, I wish there was more of Mary's uncle and of Dickon. It not having as much details impacted the story telling in some areas, in particular Mary's backstory, but I assume it was glossed over a bit because it is kind of sad and dark and this is a children's graphic novel. I wish more plotlines had also been explored. This was a very comforting and heart warming short read and I really enjoyed the way it brought me back to my childhood. The art is simply gorgeous and I love the colors.

What a delightful little adaptation of The Secret Garden! This style of graphic novel is one of my favourites to buy for my classroom library. Graphic novel adaptations of children's classics can be a great way to introduce kids to some of these older novels. They are often much more interested in reading the full novel after (or, alternatively, I have some students who have read the classic who then love to read the graphic novel afterwards!).

I found this to be a nice adaptation for the format. The main gist of the story is faithfully retold. I worry that some of the details of the original story may go over the heads of some of my readers as there is a fair amount of interpretation needed at points. I appreciate some of the choices that the author made to not include some parts of the original which is addressed at the end of the book. The information section at the end is concise, clearly-written and adds interesting details to the overall book.

The best part of this adaptation was the illustrations. They were absolutely breathtaking! The style was simple and clean but really captured the transition from winter to spring in the moors of England beautifully. I would love to see the full page spreads in person!

The Secret Garden was a huge favourite of mine as a child.
I loved the idea of a garden that no one else could enter with gorgeous flowers and such mystery! It was also one of the first books I can remember having a child in a wheelchair. I have a cousin with cerebral palsy whose been confined to a wheelchair almost all his life I found this to be a very important point to note in my teenage years (my cousin is almost 10 years younger than me). This is one of those books like: Little Women, Anne of Green Gables, and others where I tread carefully with re-tellings or new formats as they hold a special place in my heart from when I was young. However I will admit that one of my own nieces (currently 8 yrs old) loves reading but tells me that graphic novels are "the best". As a comic collector I don’t disagree with her. And yet oddly, I feel like classics should be classics and remain in novel format most days. But in the interest of possibly having my niece and her sister's favourite medium to share The Secret Garden story I gave this adaptation a shot.

True to the original story, the sentiment is, that being outdoors, amongst gorgeous lowers, sunshine, birds and wildlife can only be positive. Additionally the bonds of friendship and how important it can be to be friendly to everyone; regardless of their station in life or if they ‘report’ to you. This is an important lesson for children (and everyone) to learn and be reminded of. I always remember my father telling me that ‘you never know who your next boss will be’; so try not to alienate anyone. Personally I’m not always very good at it (lol); and so it’s a good reminder.

The artwork is very simple and cute. It felt like it gave it the ‘older’ feel that this story has always held for me. I like that it’s clearly the same time period (as witnessed by the clothing and wheelchair). The copy of this story I kept from my childhood was actually highly illustrated on glossy paper. Similar to the graphic novel the colours in the home were muted; but within the garden (and most of outdoors) were vibrant. I also liked how many of the lines used in this format are the exact same as the novel. Making this a vey true to the book adaptation.
An excellent option to bring the younger generation into a story that still has a core message relevant today.

<I>Please note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This is an honest and unbiased review.</I>