The Secret Garden was one of my very favorites when I was growing up. So, when I was perusing books at the library on Wednesday, Moongarden, a sci-fi/YA version of the classic, caught my eye.
It's fun to see the parallels between the two novels. A secret garden on the moon--secret because since all plant life on Earth became toxic, forcing humanity to migrate to the other planets, seeds and growing things are forbidden.
Myra, the protagonist, is every bit as crabby as Mary in the original and the magic the garden works on her is as profound. There is a boy whose mother's loss is blamed on the garden and whose father hates the garden but doesn't destroy it because his wife loved it.
A very fun and quick read.
Here's the official synopsis: "Centuries ago, Earth’s plants turned deadly, and humanity took to space to cultivate new homes. Myra Hodger is in her first year at an elite school on the Moon, and she’s crumbling under the pressure. She doesn’t fit in and, worse, the tattoos that signal her Number Whisperer magic aren’t developing. In her heart, she knows she doesn’t have a Creer, and soon everyone else will, too.
Wandering the halls while cutting class, she discovers a secret lab hidden behind one of the unused classrooms and, beyond that, a secret garden overflowing with plants.
As she learns more about the garden, Myra begins to wonder if she does have a Creer after all—one that died out when the Earth did. One that could help solve the food shortages the government doesn’t want anyone to know about.
Re-envisioning The Secret Garden for a new generation, Moongarden weaves together STEAM themes and intense social pressures in a stunning series starter and introduces a dynamic heroine who might just grow a revolution."
