In itibaren Agar, Uttarakhand 249125, India
One of the clearest memories of my early childhood is curling up in bed with my mother and younger sister and an illustrated copy of The Secret Garden. My mother would read it aloud to us, in English, and explain or translate whatever words we didn't understand, and I remember being absolutely mesmerized by the pictures in the book; I found all the colors of the flowers in the garden beautiful, and the red breasted robin fascinated me to no end (it really was a wonderful edition, and I sometimes wish I could find a copy to read to my future children). Years later, when I was old enough to read a "proper" book (i.e. one without pictures) on my own, I fell in love with the story behind the illustrations; Mary and Colin's redemptions, Dickon's carefree spirit, the animals and flowers that make for the backdrop of the book... Now, more than twenty years since my mother first introduced me to it, I read the book again and find myself falling for a completely different set of characters and backstories; the grumpy ol' Ben Weatherstaff, the kind Mrs. Sowerby, Colin's improper but quite amusing nurse, the long-suffering Dr. Craven, and the tragic Mr. Craven. This is what I love about this book; every time I read it, I find something new to appreciate and connect with.
This is a very intriguing and possibly disturbing book. If you are expecting a Velveteen Rabbit-esque approach, forget it. Although not what I would consider "brilliantly written" (the trial section was a little too prolonged and heavy-handed, in my opinion), it is the kind of book that leaves you feeling like you have changed in some way for the reading of it. Some of the themes that I appreciated in this book: -What does it mean to be a person? -What does it mean to "awaken" to yourself, to your own dreams, and your ability to pursue them? What happens when this awakening hits the real world? -How do you react to people/things that don't fit into your neat categories? I found that this book provoked self-examination, as I alternately put myself in the shoes of Winkie, and of the humans who are trying to figure out what to make of Winkie.