Frances Hodgson Burnett was the highest paid and most widely read woman writer of her time, publishing more than fifty novels and thirteen plays. Born in England and transplanted to New York toward the end of the Civil War, Burnett made her home in both countries, and today both countries claim her as their own. The Secret Garden , her best-known work, became an instant modern classic and world-wide bestseller upon its publication in 1911. The text of this Norton Critical Edition is based on the first edition and is accompanied by explanatory annotations.

" Backgrounds and Contexts " and " Letters " illuminate important aspects of Burnett's life and work and include her own writings on gardens and their spiritual healing. Four illustrations point to Burnett's prominence in popular culture.

" Criticism " includes fourteen contemporary reviews and nine recent critical views of The Secret Garden , including Jerry Phillips's sociopolitical interpretation and Phyllis Bixler's comparative analysis of the Broadway musical adaptation of the novel.

A Chronology and Selected Bibliography are also included.

About the Series : No other series of classic texts equals the caliber of the Norton Critical Editions . Each volume combines the most authoritative text available with the comprehensive pedagogical apparatus necessary to appreciate the work fully. Careful editing, first-rate translation, and thorough explanatory annotations allow each text to meet the highest literary standards while remaining accessible to students. Each edition is printed on acid-free paper and every text in the series remains in print. Norton Critical Editions are the choice for excellence in scholarship for students at more than 2,000 universities worldwide.

弗朗西絲·霍奇森·伯內特（1849年-1924），一位影響瞭整個20世紀的英國女作傢，是最早使用現代心理描寫手法進行少兒文學創作的作傢之一。齣於曼徹斯特，你親早逝，傢境貧寒。16歲時，弗朗西絲隨全傢移民美國；18歲時，開始發錶作品；28風時，齣版瞭她的第一部暢銷書《勞瑞傢的閨女》；62歲時，他作瞭她最著名最成功的作品《秘密花園》，奠定瞭她在英國文學史上舉足輕重的地位。此外還有代錶作品《小公主》、《小少爺方特羅伊》等，廣愛歐美國傢青少年的喜愛，都是世界文學寶庫中的經典著作。