When his brother catches measles, Tom is sent away for the summer to stay with his uncle and aunt and is thoroughly fed up about it. What a boring summer it's going to be. But then, lying in bed one night, he hears the old grandfather clock in the hall strike the very strange hour of 13 o'clock. What can it mean? As Tom creeps downstairs and opens the door, he finds out...a magical garden, a new playmate, and the adventure of a lifetime. ( )

Fanciful...timey-wimey...too gentle and charming to be called sci-fi, but you get the idea.
In this book, written in the 50s, young Tom Long must go stay with his uncle and aunt to be quarantined in case he caught the measles from his brother.
While there, late at night, he hears the grandfather clock chime thirteen times. He discovers that at this mysterious signal, he is able to walk out the door into a beautiful garden that's not there during the day.
To begin with, he just enjoys playing and exploring. But eventually he makes friends with a girl named Hatty.
Who is she? When is she? And will Tom ever understand the enigma that is his Midnight Garden?
It's a really very touching story by the end, with a surprise twist that will give you all the feels. I suppose it was written for children, but it surprised me and I enjoyed it a lot. Think "The Secret Garden," but with the laws of physics bending. :D

I read this because of a discussion on the lovely Tea or Books podcast. ( )

It's a real shame that I didn't know of this book's existence until I reached adulthood - it would have had a profoundly positive effect on me as a child. A true masterpiece. ( )

I really enjoyed this story. Tom is sent to spend the summer with his aunt and uncle when his brother has the measles. His aunt and uncle live in a small flat, part of a larger house. There is very little to entertain Tom- the small walled yard has only dustbins and a parked car, and he can’t go out because he might be contagious. He thinks he’s going to die of boredom until he makes a wonderful discovery. When the grandfather clock downstairs chimes thirteen, the back door opens into a vast, manicured garden. Pretty soon Tom is sneaking out every night to explore the garden. He meets other children there, catches glimpses of the gardener and a few adult members of this other household. Only one little girl can see him, and they strike up a friendship. Eventually Tom puzzles out that the children in the garden are from the Victorian era, and also that time moves differently for them. His life becomes so enmeshed in the happenings of the garden that he never wants to leave it.

Funny, if you think about it this book is something of a mystery. Who are the other kids in the garden? where do they come from? why can’t they all see Tom? is he a ghost in their world- or are the Victorian children all ghosts themselves? It all comes together neatly in the end. I didn’t find it sad like some other readers, I rather liked the ending. Very well written, believable characters and lots of interesting stuff to think about time, aging, how relationships change… Definitely one I’d read again, or put into my kids’ hands.

from the Dogear Diary ( )

Tom is staying with his aunt and uncle while his brother is in bed with the measles. At first he dreads it because their apartment - one of several in an old house - has no garden to play in, but he discovers that the grandfather clock in the downstairs hall chimes to its own version of time and opens the back door onto a garden of the past. He wanders that magic garden every night and there meets and befriends Hatty. Time in the garden passes differently, and Tom discovers that the magic won't last forever.
Opening a door to another, magical land is right up there on my list of excellent plot devices, and I *loved* this book when I read it a few years ago, and wish that I'd discovered it as a kid. The twist at the end is very satisfying, too. Charlie wasn't quite as enchanted with it as I am, but he still enjoyed it (or at least he humored me by saying so). ( )