Though you'd doubtlessly recognise some of the characters, adventures, sayings and iconic images if you have ever watched the 1964 film starring Julie Andrews, the books (the latter, Mary Poppins In The Park, Mary Poppins In Cherry Tree Lane and Mary Poppins And The House Next Door, of which, chronicling the adventures not yet recounted from the initial three visits, were published after the film), are, as is so often the case, well, quite different though by no means un-recognisably so.
Marketed at those aged 9+ as is clearly indicated on the back cover. The young bookworm that was me having somehow managed to miss the books, I came to them some 29 years after the last one, Mary Poppins And The House Next Door, was originally published.
OK so Mary is vain, stern, priggish, domineering, somewhat quick to anger ... I could go on. The children, brats. And arguably (though revised in 1981 after accusations of racism which apparently saw the stereotyping of several different ethnic groups including the Chinese and Native Americans) still not altogether politically correct by today's standard. P.L. Travers' Mary Poppins is hardly Mary Poppins ala Walt Disney.
And yet ...
Charmingly whimsical and essentially quintessentially British.
Each novel (bar the last two which at just over 50 pages each are more novellas than full stories) is effectively a series of random adventures contained within a chapter. Some longer than others but on the whole, each chapter/adventure read separately, ideal as a bed-time read. I enjoyed all of the books though as was expected preferred some adventures to others.
Read as a five book set containing the six full novels. My reviews of the previous books in the series are as this one.
Copyright: Tracy Terry @ Pen and Paper