Tom's Midnight Garden
Encyclopedia
Tom's Midnight Garden is a children's novel by Philippa Pearce
. It won the Carnegie Medal
in 1958, the year of its publication. It has been adapted for radio, television, the cinema, and the stage.
, Tom is sent to stay with his Uncle Alan and Aunt Gwen in a flat with no garden and an elderly and reclusive landlady, Mrs Bartholomew, living upstairs. Because he may be infectious he is not allowed out to play, and feels lonely. Without exercise he is less sleepy at night and when he hears the communal grandfather clock
strangely strike 13, he investigates and finds the small back yard is now a large sunlit garden. Here he meets another lonely child called Hatty, who seems to be the only one who can see him. They have adventures which he gradually realises are taking place in the 19th century
. And each night when Tom visits, Hatty is a different age, chronologically out of sequence.
Writing in the 1983 edition of his Written for Children, John Rowe Townsend
stated "If I were asked to name a single masterpiece of English children's literature since [the Second World War] ... it would be this outstandingly beautiful and absorbing book."
Time slip
became a popular device in British children's novels in that period. Other successful examples include Alison Uttley
's A Traveller in Time (1939, slipping back to the period of Mary, Queen of Scots), Ronald Welch
's The Gauntlet (1951, slipping back to the Welsh Marches
in the fourteenth century), Barbara Sleigh
's Jessamy
(1967, back to the First World War), and Charlotte Sometimes by Penelope Farmer
(1969, back to 1918).
, near Cambridge, England. Cambridge is represented in fictional form as Castleford throughout the book. At the time she was writing the book, the author was again living in Great Shelford, just across the road from the Mill House. The Kitsons' house is thought to be based on a house in Cambridge, near where Pearce studied during her time at university.
The theories of time of which the novel makes use derive in part from J. W. Dunne's influential 1927 work An Experiment with Time
, which also inspired others, including J. B. Priestley
.
in 1958. In 2007 it was selected by judges of the CILIP Carnegie Medal for children's literature as one of the ten most important children's novels of the past 70 years.
Philippa Pearce
Ann Philippa Pearce OBE was an English children's author.-Early life:The youngest of four children, Pearce was brought up in the Mill House in the village of Great Shelford, Cambridgeshire...
. It won the Carnegie Medal
Carnegie Medal
The Carnegie Medal is a literary award established in 1936 in honour of Scottish philanthropist Andrew Carnegie and given annually to an outstanding book for children and young adults. It is awarded by the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals...
in 1958, the year of its publication. It has been adapted for radio, television, the cinema, and the stage.
Plot summary
When Tom Long's brother Peter gets measlesMeasles
Measles, also known as rubeola or morbilli, is an infection of the respiratory system caused by a virus, specifically a paramyxovirus of the genus Morbillivirus. Morbilliviruses, like other paramyxoviruses, are enveloped, single-stranded, negative-sense RNA viruses...
, Tom is sent to stay with his Uncle Alan and Aunt Gwen in a flat with no garden and an elderly and reclusive landlady, Mrs Bartholomew, living upstairs. Because he may be infectious he is not allowed out to play, and feels lonely. Without exercise he is less sleepy at night and when he hears the communal grandfather clock
Longcase clock
A longcase clock, also tall-case clock, floor clock, or grandfather clock, is a tall, freestanding, weight-driven pendulum clock with the pendulum held inside the tower, or waist of the case. Clocks of this style are commonly 1.8–2.4 metres tall...
strangely strike 13, he investigates and finds the small back yard is now a large sunlit garden. Here he meets another lonely child called Hatty, who seems to be the only one who can see him. They have adventures which he gradually realises are taking place in the 19th century
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
. And each night when Tom visits, Hatty is a different age, chronologically out of sequence.
Themes and literary significance
The book is regarded as classic, but it also has overtones that permeate other areas of Pearce's work. We remain in doubt for a while as to who exactly is the ghost; there are questions over the nature of time and reality; and we end up believing that the midnight garden is in fact a projection from the mind of an old lady. These time/space questions occur in other of her books, especially those dealing with ghosts. The final reconciliation between Tom, still a child, and the elderly Hatty is, many have argued, one of the most moving moments in children's fiction.Writing in the 1983 edition of his Written for Children, John Rowe Townsend
John Rowe Townsend
John Rowe Townsend is a British children's author and academic. His best-known children's novel is The Intruder, which won a 1971 Edgar Award and the best-known academic work is Written for Children: An Outline of English Language Children's Literature , the definitive work of its time on the...
stated "If I were asked to name a single masterpiece of English children's literature since [the Second World War] ... it would be this outstandingly beautiful and absorbing book."
Time slip
Time slip
A time slip is an alleged paranormal phenomenon in which a person, or group of people, travel through time via unknown means...
became a popular device in British children's novels in that period. Other successful examples include Alison Uttley
Alison Uttley
Alison Uttley , née Alice Jane Taylor, was a prolific British writer of over 100 books. She is now best known for her children's series about Little Grey Rabbit, and Sam Pig....
's A Traveller in Time (1939, slipping back to the period of Mary, Queen of Scots), Ronald Welch
Ronald Welch
Ronald Welch was the pseudonym of British writer Ronald Oliver Felton TD. He took the name from his wartime regiment. He was for many years Headmaster of Okehampton Grammar School in Devon....
's The Gauntlet (1951, slipping back to the Welsh Marches
Welsh Marches
The Welsh Marches is a term which, in modern usage, denotes an imprecisely defined area along and around the border between England and Wales in the United Kingdom. The precise meaning of the term has varied at different periods...
in the fourteenth century), Barbara Sleigh
Barbara Sleigh
Barbara Grace de Riemer Sleigh was a well-known British children's writer and broadcaster.-Family and career:Barbara Sleigh was born in Birmingham, the daughter of the artist Bernard Sleigh and his wife Stella, née Phillp, who had married in 1901. Both came from a Methodist background, but she was...
's Jessamy
Jessamy
Jessamy by Barbara Sleigh is a children's book that sheds light on English life during World War I through a time slip narrative.-The setting:...
(1967, back to the First World War), and Charlotte Sometimes by Penelope Farmer
Penelope Farmer
-Life:She was born as a fraternal twin in Westerham, Kent, on 14 June 1939 to Hugh Robert MacDonald and Penelope Boothby Farmer. After attending a boarding school, she read history at St Anne's College, Oxford and did postgraduate work at Bedford College, University of London.Information about...
(1969, back to 1918).
Allusions
The historical part of the book is set in the grounds of a mansion, which in many details resembles the real house in which the author grew up: the Mill House in Great ShelfordGreat Shelford
Great Shelford is a village located approximately four miles to the south of Cambridge, in the county of Cambridgeshire, in eastern England. In 1850 Great Shelford parish contained intersected by the river Cam. The population in 1841 was 803 people...
, near Cambridge, England. Cambridge is represented in fictional form as Castleford throughout the book. At the time she was writing the book, the author was again living in Great Shelford, just across the road from the Mill House. The Kitsons' house is thought to be based on a house in Cambridge, near where Pearce studied during her time at university.
The theories of time of which the novel makes use derive in part from J. W. Dunne's influential 1927 work An Experiment with Time
An Experiment with Time
An Experiment with Time is a long essay by the Irish aeronautical engineer J. W. Dunne on the subjects of precognition and the human experience of time. First published in March 1927, it was very widely read, and his ideas promoted by several other authors, in particular by J. B. Priestley. Other...
, which also inspired others, including J. B. Priestley
J. B. Priestley
John Boynton Priestley, OM , known as J. B. Priestley, was an English novelist, playwright and broadcaster. He published 26 novels, notably The Good Companions , as well as numerous dramas such as An Inspector Calls...
.
Awards and nominations
The novel won the prestigious Carnegie MedalCarnegie Medal
The Carnegie Medal is a literary award established in 1936 in honour of Scottish philanthropist Andrew Carnegie and given annually to an outstanding book for children and young adults. It is awarded by the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals...
in 1958. In 2007 it was selected by judges of the CILIP Carnegie Medal for children's literature as one of the ten most important children's novels of the past 70 years.
Film, TV or theatrical adaptations
- Dramatized by the BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
three times, in 1968, 1974, and 1988 (which aired in 1989). - 1999 Full-length movie starring Anthony WayAnthony WayAnthony Way is an English chorister and classical singer who shot to fame after appearing as a chorister in a BBC TV series. He has since had success as a recording artist, with gold and platinum discs to his credit.-Biography:...
- 2001 Adapted for the stage by David WoodDavid Wood (actor)David Wood OBE is an English-born actor and writer, called "the National Children's Dramatist" by The Times.He was educated at Chichester High School For Boys and Worcester College, Oxford....
Release details
- 1958, UK, Oxford University Press (ISBN 0-19-271128-8), Pub date: 31 December 1958, hardback (First edition)
- 1992, UK, HarperCollins (ISBN 0-397-30477-3), Pub date: 1 February 1992, hardback
- 2001, Adapted for the stage by David Wood, Samuel French (ISBN 0-573-05127-5)