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Summary: Regarding revisions to "Mary Poppins"...
Review: Below, a reader comments on the changes to the "Bad Tuesday" chapter, lamenting that in these PC times someone has taken the liberty to revise P.L. Travers.She (or he) is partly correct: the chapter was indeed revised--but some time ago, in 1981. And the person who performed the revision was none other than Pamela Travers (not some craven editor). Readers may rest assured that this book--and its sequels--remain exactly as she intended them. No one other than the author has changed a word.
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Summary: Even "Right-Wingers" love Mary!
Review: Contrary to what SOME people may think not ALL "Right Wing"ers (I assume they mean conservative, Pro-life Christians, which I am)are book burners or anti-Mary Poppins. I LOVE M.P. and so do my six children. I read it as a child and loved it and am now reading it to my younger kids. It's wonderful literature, everyone should own it for their home library, especially homeschoolers like us! Great vocabulary, literary elements, geographical/historical info. and pure FUN! As to the "Bad Tuesday" chapter, we just read it (revised version) and loved it. Every child has times when they feel that way - mad at the world. Forcing them to "be nice" may not always be the answer. Even kids need to vent sometimes! I think this chapter was great. Seems like everyone mostly ignored Michaels bad behavior, instead of giving him the attention he was after and then he suffered the "consequences" of his own misbehavior in the end when the animals turned on him! Then Mary was there to comfort him in her very distinct way (I think she only pretends not to care and the kids know it!) and he was apologetic and a changed little boy. I think this chapter is good because it shows kids that feeling and acting "bad" sometimes is normal and that even good kids (as Michael usually is) sometimes misbehave but that their family still loves them and will forgive them. (And that if you're TOO bad wild animals may get you!!!) And to anyone trying to read something into it (witchcraft, Eastern religion) - GET REAL! It's a fun children's book, nothing more. It's pure fun and fantasy. No different or more evil than Narnia, The Lord of the Rings, Winnie the Pooh, or any classic fairy tale (Cinderella, Snow White, etc). Fantasies stimulate the imagination, expand the mind, foster a love of reading and literature, and make the heart sing! Good books are one of the best part of childhood - let's not spoil them for kids with our conspiracy theories.
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Summary: Mary Poppins is a great book!
Review: Have you ever seen the Disney Classic Mary Poppins? If you liked the movie, you will love this book, by P.L. Travers. Mary Poppins, an eccentric nanny, arrives at Cherry Tree Lane. Her newest chldren are named Michael, Jane, and the twins, named John and Barbra. The book does include the favorite scenes when Mary Poppins jumps into the picture and when they got stuck to the ceiling. But do you know what happens on Mary Poppins birthday when it lands on a full moon? The book does include Bert, the charming chimney sweeper in the movie, who is still charming but is a matchman and a person who paints on the sidewalk. Bert went with Mary Poppins into the picture on Mary Poppins day out. Although there are some diferences between the book and the movie but itis a good book. Read it and you will love it.
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Summary: Beautiful work of literature for all ages
Review: I bought a copy of this book when I was 9. I read it , loved it, but as any child would, eventually lost it. As I was going through a pile of stuff in the attic the other day, I came across it once again. The pages were yellowed and torn, and the spine was falling apart, but the story never lost its magic. I was engrossed in the characters' every move, and I actually cried when the book reached its end. I would recommend Mary Poppins for readers of all ages, for it is a work of art that leaves memories that will be treasured for a lifetime.
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Summary: If you want to find Cherry-Tree Lane...
Review: I have to admit that I cannot completely explain the attraction of Pamela Travers' tale of Mary Poppins, nanny extraordinaire. But 48 years later, and Julie Andrews notwithstanding, I still found myself nodding and smiling as I read the book. Strange things just happen around Mary. You can wander into paintings and travel the world with a magic compass. Laughter makes you fly and the animals in the zoo will celebrate your birthday if you're nice. All at Mary Poppins' whimsy. Growing up in the U.S., with no concept of what a nanny was, I still loved her right away. What is odd about this is that she actually isn't all that likable. She is quite vain and very, very bossy. She says 'no' a lot, and rarely stops to explain herself or reveal her secrets. Yet somehow you know that she will never let you down and she always will do what she says. Young Jane and Michael (and the even younger twins) couldn't ask for a better guide and protector. In a family where the father is most often at work 'in the city' and the mother is loving but a trifle inept, Mary is the glue that keeps things working together. The book is actually a series of short tales of a fantastical nature. Sometimes the tale contains the requisite grain of wisdom and sometimes it is just silly fun. Perhaps the willingness to be light hearted is what charms young listeners. In addition to those already mentioned, there is the tale of the dancing cow, and a touching explanation of why we cannot talk to birds. Even though the book is quite readable for an 8 or nine year old, it is really best for being read to children. The adventures should be appealing to almost any child and the pen and ink sketches are a delight to look at. If you are considering buying a reprint edition, there is, another reason why the book is best read out loud by a parent. In 1934, when the it was originally published, a certain amount of cultural insensitivity was common, and while it did harm, it was not really intended to. In one story, 'Bad Tuesday,' the children travel the world to meet Eskimos, Chinese, Native Americans and Blacks. While all these people are stereotyped, the description of the Black Africans is atrocious. People of color will find it quite offensive. Thanks heavens, in the Odyssey Classics edition this has been remedied. It is the latter I recommend. It is a relief that there are publishers who understand the value of a wonderful story and will take the appropriate steps to keep it accessible. Mary Poppins teaches us all that wonder lies behind even the most mundane things. I expect I will be right there with Michael and Jane waiting for our magical nanny to return.
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Summary: For Children Only
Review: I never read this as a child, but I did see the Disney movie. However, it's been so long since I saw the movie that I can't recall much about it other than "Supercalifrag..."--you know--and, while there's a medicine scene here, it certainly didn't ring any memory bells. I suspect that Disney was true to form and took quite a few liberties with the story. On its own, the book is quite disjointed. I can see where it might work on a read-aloud a chapter-per-night basis, but in one sitting it was hurried and almost nonsensical. Part of my dissatisfaction could be that I am not the intended audience, but I feel that children's books like children's movies should be able to grab both the interest of children and adults alike, at least once. I'm going to have to file Mary Poppins with Norman Juster's The Phantom Tollbooth as another children's book that I just missed out on. Thankfully, I was able to still appreciate books like The Adventures of Pinocchio and James and the Giant Peach, although I had not read those as a child.
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Summary: What a woman!
Review: I read all three Mary Poppins books when I was a child in the forties. I loved Mary Poppins. I loved her hat and her severe blue suit and her sensible shoes, but most of all I loved her umbrella with its parrot head. I've been looking for one like it all my life. I've owned a couple of umbrellas with ducks' heads, but I never found one with a parrot head. When Disney announced that Julie Andrews would play Mary Poppins in a movie, I was shocked and appalled. Were these movie people absolutely insane? Of all the people in the entire world, dead or alive, Julie Andrews is the very last person I would choose to play Mary Poppins. In fact, if Julie Andrews were the only person in the world left to play the role, I'd forget about making the movie and reread the book. Agnes Moorehead, now, might have worked.
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Summary: GREAT BOOK
Review: I think it is a good book for all ages. I'm only eight but I think it was way better than the movie. The part I liked best was when the animals got out of their cages.
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Summary: Right Wing nuts can't smother the immortal Mary
Review: I was amused, in an appalled kind of way, by the 2-star ratings for this classic from a couple of reviewers suffering from an advanced case of religious tunnel vision, in which they suggest that Mary Poppins is a front for paganism and satanism. P. L. Travers, one of the most accomplished and gifted women of the 20th century, was a scholar whose wide knowledge of myth and fairy tale enhanced rather than undermined her unshakeable religious beliefs. That she didn't broadcast her faith as did that tiresome convert C. S. Lewis is only to her everlasting credit. What, precisely, do the shallow readings of these intellectually challenged reviewers signify? Nix Naught Nothing. If they had read further, and deeper, they would have found, at the end of "Mary Poppins Opens the Door," writ large in capital letters: "GLORIA IN EXCELCIS DEO" which, for the unLatined, translates as "Glory to God in the Highest." This, I submit, is not the way a Pagan or a satanist would choose to end one of their books.
In Jonathan Cott's excellent 1983 book on great children's authors, "Pipers at the Gates of Dawn", Cott quotes Travers: "C. S. Lewis has a wonderful phrase to the effect that 'there is only one Creator, and we merely mix the elements he gives us.' I never use the word 'creator' or 'creative', because I know that I'm neither. I'm a sort of apprentice, perhaps." This is a perfect example of her radiant faith and modest self view. For those who would like to know more about this brilliant woman, who died in 1996, I suggest they read "Lively Oracles", edited by Ellen Dooling Draper and Jenny Koralek (available through Amazon), a loving and fascinating tribute to the memory of one of the greatest children's authors who ever drew breath.
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Summary: A wonderful, magical book
Review: If all you know of Mary Poppins is the Disney version, you owe it to yourself to read about the real Mary Poppins, who is very different! This book is really magical. Mary Poppins is a truly mystical figure, even a little scary. You will not forget her. I also enjoyed the setting of this book very much---Edwardian England. The whole Mary Poppins series is consistantly great.
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