KidLit Forum

I always had the idea that Mary Poppins is a nice, funny, caring , affectionate lady. Well, she isn`t... She treats children with cold and she is distant but she is much loved by them. Maybe because they could see beyond her facade and they discovered her magic. Mary Poppins is not all sugar and honey but she is honest, smart, educated and has many secrets. She takes us into a mysterious world and makes us wonder if she could be real.

I was also surprised how different role she has in the book. I've seen the film adaptation years ago, and I supposed that Mary Poppins will be as lovely as in the film. The adaptation concentrates more on the imagination of children, with catchy songs, and joyful scenes, which demonstrate that life of a child can be fun with a "super" nanny. There are very few similarities with the book for example I've found adapted the following chapters like "The date out" Laughing gas", "Miss Lark's Andrew", "The bird woman". Of course the film concentrates more on entertainment.

I agree with Georgia Grilli that Mary Poppins is a “provocateur” or an "enabler". She takes the children out into the world and lets them discover things for themselves. Mary Poppins reminds me of Ms. Frizzle from a cartoon I used to watch when I was young, “The Magic School Bus”. Ms. Frizzle is an eccentric third grade teacher. She uses unusual magic devices to teach the class about science concepts. She takes students out with the magic school bus and lets them ask questions and figure their answers out individually. As with Mary Poppins children notice her “magic powers” but do not ask questions about them. The major difference between the two is that Mary Poppins is way too strict and sober while Ms. Frizzle is always enthusiastic and positive.

P. L. Travers considers that writers of children’s books make mistakes worrying too much about what is and what is not suitable for children. She says that “Nobody writes for children really” because if you write for them only you lose a lot of readers. She is right because the most important children’s books are read and enjoyed both by children and their parents. If parents can’t stop laughing while reading a story for children there are great chances that it is good for the young ones too. Moreover, why would you recommend a book or a story to your child if you don’t like it either? Even in movies or animations for kids nowadays you can notice that film directors insert bits of plot or situations that would also be enjoyed by the parents who watch the film together with their children.