Tom's Midnight Garden

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of death, child abuse, bullying, and gender discrimination.

The exploration of the influence of history on the present is central to Tom’s Midnight Garden. Through the time slips experienced by the protagonist, Tom, the novel explores how the past and present coexist and impact one another. As Tom discovers a garden that no longer exists and meets Hatty, a girl from the past, the author illustrates how history shapes individuals’ experience and understanding of the present.

The midnight garden bridges Tom’s present in the 1950s and Hatty’s late-Victorian era. When the protagonist visits the garden each night, he becomes part of a living past. Tom sees firsthand how the house where multiple tenants now live was once the home of the Melbourne family with expansive grounds. Ironically, Tom’s experiences of history in the garden seem more vivid to him than his dull present. Feeling that he lives “his real and interesting life at night-time” (99), his days are spent anticipating his next visit. Furthermore, Tom’s static existence as he quarantines in the Kitsons’ apartment contrasts with the evolving world of Hatty, who grows up before his eyes.