The Secret Garden quotes, explained for kids
The Secret Garden has some of the best-loved lines in children’s books: a famously grumpy first sentence, a girl who asks for “a bit of earth,” and a boy who shouts that he will live forever. These ten lines follow Mary from a cross, lonely child to a happy gardener. They are perfect for reading aloud, especially the Yorkshire words like “wick.” Pick one, look at what it says about feelings or growing things, and let your child tell you what they think it means.
Every line is quoted word for word from the original 1911 novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett.
Quote 1: “When Mary Lennox was sent to Misselthwaite Manor to live with her uncle everybody said she was the most disagreeable-looking child ever seen.”
Narrator, these are the very first words of the book What it means: Mary starts the story looking sour and unhappy, and nobody likes her. It is a surprising way to begin, because we expect heroines to be sweet.
Ask your child: Why do you think the author started with a grumpy girl instead of a nice one?
Quote 2: “Mistress Mary, quite contrary, How does your garden grow?”
Basil, a boy in India teases Mary with an old nursery rhyme because she is so cross What it means: “Contrary” means someone who always does the opposite and grumbles. The rhyme is a tease, but it also hints that Mary will one day have a real garden.
Ask your child: Has anyone ever given you a nickname? How did it make you feel?
Quote 3: “He’s a robin redbreast an’ they’re th’ friendliest, curiousest birds alive.”
Ben Weatherstaff, the old gardener tells Mary about the little bird that keeps following her What it means: Ben is saying robins are very friendly and nosy, always wanting to see what people are doing. The robin becomes Mary’s first friend.
Ask your child: If a bird followed you around, what would you say to it?
Quote 4: “She was standing inside the secret garden.”
Narrator, mary finally finds the hidden door and steps through it What it means: After all her searching, Mary is inside the garden that has been locked for ten years. Nobody else knows she is there.
Ask your child: What would you hope to find inside a secret garden?
Quote 5: “It’s as wick as you or me”
Dickon, dickon checks the gray, tangled rose bushes to see if they are dead What it means: In Yorkshire, “wick” means alive. Dickon is telling Mary the garden is not dead, it is only sleeping and waiting to grow.
Ask your child: How can you tell if a plant is still alive?
Quote 6: “Might I have a bit of earth?”
Mary, mary’s uncle asks if she wants toys, books or dolls, and this is what she asks for instead What it means: Mary does not want presents. She wants a small piece of ground where she can plant seeds and watch them grow.
Ask your child: If you had your own bit of earth, what would you plant?
Quote 7: “I shall live forever and ever and ever!”
Colin, colin sees the garden for the very first time What it means: Colin has always believed he would be sick and die young. In the spring sunshine he suddenly feels strong and full of hope.
Ask your child: What makes you feel full of energy and happiness?
Quote 8: “I am sure there is Magic in everything, only we have not sense enough to get hold of it and make it do things for us”
Colin, colin explains his big idea about Magic to his friends in the garden What it means: Colin thinks the power that makes flowers grow and people get well is a kind of Magic. He wants to learn how to use it.
Ask your child: What do you think is the most magical thing in nature?
Quote 9: “At first people refuse to believe that a strange new thing can be done, then they begin to hope it can be done, then they see it can be done”
Narrator, near the end, the narrator steps back to talk about how new ideas and big changes happen What it means: Lots of amazing things seem impossible until someone does them. First people doubt, then they hope, then they see it really happen.
Ask your child: Can you think of something you once thought was impossible but then learned to do?
Quote 10: “Where you tend a rose, my lad, A thistle cannot grow.”
Narrator, the narrator shares this little rhyme while explaining how the garden has changed everyone What it means: If you fill your mind with good things, like taking care of a rose, there is no room for prickly, unhappy thoughts, like a weed called a thistle.
Ask your child: What good things could you “plant” in your mind today?
Questions about The Secret Garden quotes
- What is the most famous quote from The Secret Garden?
- The best-known are Mary’s request, “Might I have a bit of earth?” and Colin’s joyful shout, “I shall live forever and ever and ever!” Many people also love the rhyme “Where you tend a rose, my lad, a thistle cannot grow.”
- What does “wick” mean in The Secret Garden?
- “Wick” is a Yorkshire word for alive or lively. Dickon uses it to show Mary that the gray rose bushes are still alive inside.
- Is “If you look the right way, you can see that the whole world is a garden” from the book?
- No. A line like it is spoken at the end of the 1993 film, not from Frances Hodgson Burnett’s novel. The book’s own famous garden lines include “Where you tend a rose, my lad, a thistle cannot grow.”
- Who says “Might I have a bit of earth?” in The Secret Garden?
- Mary Lennox says it to her uncle, Mr. Craven, when he asks if she would like toys, books or dolls. He is surprised, and he tells her she can take earth wherever she likes.