"At first people refuse to believe that a strange new thing can be done, then they begin to hope it can be done, then they see it can be done, then it is done and all the world wonders why it was not done centuries ago."— Frances Hodgson Burnett, The Secret Garden
Frances Hodgson Burnett
The writer who believed in hidden, magical places
Frances was born in Manchester, England, where her dad ran a successful business. But when she was 4, her father died, and everything changed. Her mom tried to keep the business going, but it failed. They got poorer and poorer.
When Frances was 15, her family moved across the ocean to America to start over in Tennessee. They lived in a tiny log cabin and had almost no money. So Frances did the only thing she knew how to do, she wrote. She sent stories to magazines. The magazines paid her.
Quick Facts
- Born: November 24, 1849
- From: Manchester, England (later moved to Tennessee)
- Job: Author of over 50 books
- Famous for: The Secret Garden, A Little Princess, Little Lord Fauntleroy
When her son Vivian was little, his blonde curls and velvet suits inspired Little Lord Fauntleroy, which made the velvet-suit-with-lace-collar a kid fashion trend for years!
Her Famous Stories
Read Burnett's stories on Worldly
Frances wrote about kids finding hidden places and healing through them. On Worldly, every page is adapted to your reading level.
★ On Worldly
1911Mary Lennox, lonely and grumpy, comes to a huge English manor. She finds a garden locked for ten years, and a hidden boy too. Bringing them both back to life changes everything.
1905Sara Crewe arrives at a London boarding school as the richest girl there. When her fortune disappears, she has to use her wits and imagination to survive.
1886A kind American boy discovers he's the heir to an English earldom, and slowly melts the cold heart of his grumpy grandfather.
Her Life, Year by Year
From log cabin to literary fame
Frances spent her life moving back and forth between England and America, finding the seeds of her best stories in both places.
Born to a comfortable family
Frances Eliza Hodgson is born in Manchester, England, to a family that has enough money. Then her dad dies when she's only 4.
The family moves to America
With the family broke, Frances's mom moves the family to Tennessee to live near relatives. They live in a log cabin. Frances is 15.
Her first paid story
To help her family, 18-year-old Frances sends a story to Godey's Lady's Book. They pay her. She starts publishing more, fast. Her writing keeps the family fed.
Marriage and motherhood
Frances marries Dr. Swan Burnett. They eventually have two sons, Lionel and Vivian. Frances keeps writing the whole time.
Little Lord Fauntleroy
Frances publishes Little Lord Fauntleroy, inspired by her curly-haired son Vivian. It's a smash hit, and starts a fashion trend for "Fauntleroy suits" with lace collars.
A heartbreaking loss
Frances's older son Lionel dies at age 16 from tuberculosis. She is devastated. She channels her grief into writing about kids healing through nature, friendship, and discovery.
A Little Princess
Frances publishes A Little Princess, the story of a wealthy English schoolgirl who loses everything and discovers her own strength. Kids love it.
The Secret Garden
Frances writes The Secret Garden at her real garden in Kent, England. It tells of a lonely orphan girl who finds a locked garden, and brings it back to life. It becomes her most beloved book.
She dies at her American home
Frances dies at 74 at her home on Long Island. She'd written more than 50 books and become one of the most popular writers of her era.
The Worlds She Wrote
Three things every Burnett book has
Whether it's a hidden garden, an attic room, or a fancy English house, Frances loved writing about kids finding magic in places.
Secret Garden · 1911
A place no one else knows about
Mary Lennox finds a garden locked for ten years and brings it back to life. Every kid who reads it wants a secret garden of their own.
A Little Princess · 1905
Imagination as armor
When Sara Crewe loses everything and ends up in a freezing attic, she survives by pretending she's a princess in disguise. Imagination saves her.
Little Lord Fauntleroy · 1886
Kindness changes adults
Cedric, a poor American boy, inherits an English earldom, and through sheer goodness, transforms his grumpy old grandfather. The book made readers around the world believe in kid power.
Wait… really?!
Six surprising things about Frances
She published her first story at 18
Frances mailed her first story to a magazine when she was 18. They paid her $10, enough to help feed her whole family for weeks. She kept writing for the rest of her life.
She started a kids' fashion trend
Little Lord Fauntleroy was so popular that moms across America started dressing their boys in velvet suits with white lace collars, even when the boys hated it.
She had a real secret garden
Frances spent years renovating an old walled garden at Maytham Hall in England. That garden inspired The Secret Garden, she said the robin in the book was a real robin who used to follow her around.
She lost a child
Her older son Lionel died of tuberculosis at age 16. She poured her grief into stories about lonely kids finding healing, which made her books feel real to anyone who'd lost someone.
She moved between England and America
Frances kept homes in both England and the United States and crossed the Atlantic many times. Both countries shaped her stories.
She wrote for grown-ups too
Frances was famous in her lifetime for her ADULT novels and plays. The Secret Garden was a quieter hit at first, kids' books became her legacy years later.
Good questions, answered
Frances Burnett FAQ
Was she English or American?+
Both! Frances was born in England, moved to America at 15, and lived in both countries for the rest of her life. Many of her stories blend English settings with American characters.
Was the secret garden a real place?+
Sort of, Frances spent years restoring an old walled garden at Maytham Hall in Kent, England. That garden inspired the book. She wrote outside, and a robin really did follow her around, he became the robin in the story.
What age is The Secret Garden good for?+
Kids from ages 7 and up can enjoy it. The Worldly version updates the older language and softens difficult moments, so it stays gentle and easy to follow.
How many books did she write?+
More than 50! Frances was a wildly productive writer, novels, kids' books, plays, and short stories. The Secret Garden, A Little Princess, and Little Lord Fauntleroy are the three still most loved today.
Why are her books still loved?+
They take real feelings kids have, being lonely, being scared, missing someone, feeling stuck, and show how kindness, imagination, and nature can turn things around. They feel true even though they're cozy.
Ready for an adventure?
Dive in with Frances Burnett
Start with The Secret Garden, adapted to fit your reading level. Free in the Worldly app.