The Secret Garden | Part 1 (Ch 1-4)

Content warning: racism. See statement below and at start of episode for more info. Chapter 1 begins at 02:41. The explicitly racist dialogue takes place between 47:18 - 49:43.
Mary Lennox, the daughter of a colonist in India, is sent back to England when her parents die to live with her uncle in a Yorkshire manor house. Used to being waited on by servants in India, Mary struggles to adjust to her new life. The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett is in the public domain worldwide. This is a Willow Audiobook read by Stephen Alexander. Cover illustration by Benjamin Callery. Original music by Stephen Alexander.
Full text of statement:
Hello! I’m Stephen Alexander, the producer and narrator of Willow Audiobooks. Thank you for downloading this episode, the first part of The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett. I’m very excited to share this book with you, but before we begin the story, I just wanted to address the fact that, although this book has rightly been loved by generations of children and adults alike, The Secret Garden is not without its problems.
The novel was first published in 1911, and consequently reflects the attitudes of many people at the time. There is one particular moment in this first section of the book where characters briefly, but explicitly, express racist views, which are left unchallenged by the narrative or by other characters. Throughout the rest of the book, while the prejudices are less explicit, there are some unfortunate overtones of British colonialism, and arguably some issues around the portrayal of disability and illness, which, while open to interpretation, are still very much worth discussing, in my opinion.
When I came across these issues in the text, particularly the more explicit racism in the early chapters, I will admit that I briefly considered abridging the text to simply remove those elements, and “clean up” the book. However, I believe that to do so would be akin to brushing these issues under the carpet and pretending that they don’t exist. Racism is a very real problem in our society, both historically and today, and it cannot and should not be ignored. Therefore, in listening to this audio version of The Secret Garden, which I still believe to be a beautiful and inspiring tale deserving of its place on our bookshelves (and on our audio devices), I would ask that you do so with sensitivity to the book’s issues, and that you take the time to think, research and discuss with those around you – of course many of us are taking the time at the moment to do this anyway. If you’re sharing this audiobook with children, perhaps it could provide a platform for some important conversations around race and our history. The current format of Willow Audiobooks necessarily revolves around texts which are old enough to be in the public domain, and I think one would be hard-pressed to find a classic novel which lives up to today’s ideals. Therefore I don’t propose to try and judge a book written over a hundred years ago by today’s standards. But I do think it’s important to put these problematic elements under a lens, acknowledge them, be critical of them and discuss them, rather than trying to ignore them. With that said, I really hope you enjoy this version of The Secret Garden, and that you find its themes of friendship and rejuvenation as charming as I did. Thank you.