A Little Princess & The Secret Garden both by Frances Hodgson Burnett

These are wonderful classics. Amazing how different it is from The Little Princess starring Shirley Temple version. My daughter and I read it together out loud. She then wrote a really good book report about her favorite parts. Here it is:

A Little Princess

This was a good story. It was exciting. I think my whole family should read it.
There was a girl named Sara. She started out very rich. She got more then she ever wanted. She was very nice and not the typical spoiled type. She was kind, generous and not stuck up. She acted like a royal princess.

Then her dad died and she lost everything abut her doll Emily. They made her a servant and she slept in the right hand attic next to Becky the scully maid. Sara had always been friends with this servant girl.

Sara, even though she didn't have money, she still acted like a princess. She worked hard. She didn't get much to eat. She taught the children French lessons. She had a good attitude.

One of my favorite parts was when Miss Michin gave her a basic book on learning French when she first arrived. When the French Master came in she spoke to him in fluent French. She had learned it since birth because her mom was French.

Another favorite part was later when she woke up in the usually cold attic instead it was warm and had a fire, warm blankets and food. she thought it was a dream and maybe even magic.

The sick man from India next door felt sorry for her. It was he that secretly gave her all these things. He was actually looking for her but didn't know it till later.

One time when Sara was out on an errand she was very very hungry. She found a four pence in the mud. She saw a little girl in front of a bakery. She asked the girl if she was hungry. The girl was hungrier then she was. Sara went into the bakery and asked for four buns. The bakery women gave her six. She saw hunger in her eyes and felt sorry for her. Sara took the buns out to share with the hungry girl on the street. She gave her five and only ate one herself.

Sara was finally found by the Indian Gentleman who actually had been her father's partner in the Diamond Mines. She was rich again. The man adopted her and took Becky with them. She was not a scully maid anymore, now she was Sara's personal maid. She always had plenty to eat and warm clothes to wear. Sara also got a dog for a pet.

I think Sara was very courageous. Even though she was poor and unhappy living as a servant, she acted like a generous little princess.
The End.

We also read this last month The Secret Garden. My son decided this was the best book he read all year and wrote this book report on it:

The Best Book I Read All Year

The Best Book I Read All Year was The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett. It is about a boy and a girl about 12 years old. They live in Yorkshire, England, in a Manor, which is a huge house with lots of servants and rooms. It is surrounded by the Moors and lots of Gardens. The main two characters are Mary and Colin.

Mary starts out being very lonely and very selfish. She is shown where the key is to a secret forgotten garden. She starts to weed the overgrown plants and helps the garden come back to life. Sometimes she hears strange crying sounds coming from inside the Manor. She discovers her cousin, Colin and they become good friends.

Colin has thought all his life he was going to die. He is sickly and week. His dad is a hunchback man and he thinks he will be just like him. Mary doesn't agree and talks him into thinking he could get better. Colin can't walk because he has sat in his bed most of his life being sick. He throws tantrums and bosses all the servants and doctors around.

One of the funny parts of the book is when Colin is having a tantrum. Mary marches in and stamps her foot, yells louder then Colin, telling him to stop it and tells him she won't be his friend or visit him again if he keeps acting like that. This surprises him and he stops crying. Mary tells him about the secret garden and he wants to go see it. This gives him hope that he can be a normal boy and make his dad proud of him.

There is another boy that lives in the neighborhood named Dickon. He helps Mary in the garden and when Colin wants to go outside he pushes his wheelchair. They all keep the garden a secret from the adults. As they help the garden come to life they each change inside. By taking care of something else they stop being so selfish and self-centered. They become more healthy and happy being outside in the garden. They all become good friends and help each other.

I wish I had a secret garden so that I could play there. This was the best book I read all year.

The End

both are Whole books