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Tom’s Midnight Garden

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Book Synopsis

When Tom is sent to stay at his aunt and uncle’s house for the summer, he resigns himself to endless weeks of boredom. Lying awake at night, he hears the old grandfather clock downstairs strike . . . eleven . . . twelve . . . thirteen . . . Thirteen! How strange! When Tom gets up to investigate, he discovers a magical garden. A garden that everyone told him doesn’t exist. A garden that only he can enter . . .

In this enchanted thirteenth hour, the garden comes alive-but Tom is never sure whether the children he meets there are real or ghosts . . . This magical story is one of the best-loved children’s books of all time.

Our Review Panel says...

Eleven, Twelve, Thirteen chimes the old grandfather clock in the communal hallway of Tom’s Aunt and Uncle’s rented accommodation. Thirteen chimes? Surely this is impossible. What might happen in this magical extra hour? As Tom leaves the flat and explores the old house, he finds himself in an expansive garden full of life. It soon comes to light that this enchanting garden comes alive only in this thirteenth hour. Tom watches people go about their lives, invisible, until a little girl spies him and he finds himself a new companion. How can this be, and why does the girl and the garden change every night?

This classic children’s story by Philippa Pearce is full of adventure, mystery, history and emotion.. The book is hard to put down, with chapters leaving you wanting more and wondering where Tom will find himself next.