The Tinker's Daughter: A Story Based on the Life of the Young Mary Bunyan

Daughters of the Faith #6

by Wendy Lawton

John Bunyan, author of Pilgrim's Progress, only mentioned one of his children in his memoirs: Mary. Born blind in 17th-century England, she held a special place in her Father's heart.

When Mr. Bunyan was arrested for unlawful preaching, young Mary travels the streets of Bedford each day, bringing soup to the prison. She resolves to prove she is independent and not hindered by her blindness. Only when she realizes she needs help does she turn to the Lord, the Source of all strength.

"Warm and inspiring, The Tinker's Daughter abounds with word pictures that bring meaning to the world of blind Mary Bunyan. Sure to touch a family's heart!"
— Lois Walfrid Johnson, author, Adventures of the Northwoods mysteries and Freedom Seekers series

Genres: Historical Fiction, Christian Fiction, Historical, Middle Grade, Christian, Childrens, Fiction

144 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2002

About the author

Wendy Lawton, award-winning writer, sculptor, and doll designer, founded the Lawton Doll Company in 1979.
Lawton is a long-time lover of classic Christian literature. She has written eight books in her young adult Daughters of the Faith series. These books were followed by a series of four teen books and a nonfiction adult book. She won the 1999 Writer of the Year Award at the Mount Hermon Christian Writer’s Conference. She also won the famous Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest for the intentional worst first line of a novel in the Children’s Literature category.

Lawton received an honorary Doctor of Arts and Letters degree on January 18, 2004, from Wilmington College, located in New Castle, Delaware.

She and Keith, her husband of 30 years, are the parents of three. They reside in Hilmar, California, where they farm 30 acres of almonds and care for two dogs, an aged goose, and five elderly cats.

Lawton is the Vice President of Books and Such Literary Management. See their website here.

Reviews

[Erin O'Connor {If The Review Fits} · Rating 4 out of 5]

A little too childish for my liking. Although it was a wonderful story, and I love reading about John Bunyan, her being nine years old and me being fourteen or fifteen made it less enjoyable

[Rebekah Morris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading like a fictional story, this story of Mary, the daughter of John Bunyan was well done. So many biographies for children are dry and dull. This was neither. It is a book I would recommend to anyone of any age.

[Mckinley Howard · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a sweet little story about John Bunyan's blind daughter, Mary. She thinks she can do everything by herself and doesn't like when people pity and look down on her for being blind. Mary learns some valuable lessons throughout the book and I especially liked how I could relate to Mary in some ways. I really enjoyed reading this!!!

[Lindsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is about John Bunyan's daughter, Mary. She was a blind girl growing up in the 17th century. It tells of her day to day life. It explains how she wanted to be independent even though she was handicapped. Also, it explains how even back then, kids were bullied. Mary is famous for making the trip every day to bring her father his supper when her father was in prison, and how she tried to support her family.

[Erin O'Connor {If The Review Fits} · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one was a bit more childish than the rest of the series, probably because the girl is only nine. But, I'm such a sucker for books about or by John Bunyan, so I had to read it.

[Zorina Shepard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Many are familiar with the famous John Bunyan and his book Pilgrim’s Progress. But did you know about his daughter, Mary Bunyan, who was blind?

The Tinker’s Daughter is based on the true story of Mary Bunyan. While there are some fictional additions, the main storyline is rooted in real events.

Mary prides herself on her independence as a young blind girl. When her father is imprisoned for preaching, she comes up with a plan to help provide for her family. In her pride and self-reliance, she ends up hurting her relationships with those around her. Along the way, she is humbled and grows from “I can do all things…” to “I can do all things through Christ,” as she repents of her pride and self-reliance and learns to receive help from the people God places in her life.

This is a beautiful story of a young girl learning her need for Christ and growing in humility and trust in her Savior.

Content Note:
The word “stupid” is used at least once. Death is mentioned, and there is a brief reference to a baby who dies after birth.

This is my second book from the Daughters of the Faith series, and it has been wonderful so far. I am eagerly looking forward to reading another!

Favorite Quotes:

“Which do you think is more pleasing to God: when we stop along life’s way to encourage fellow pilgrims on the journey, or when we step over struggling pilgrims and race to a spectacular finish?”



“Do you enjoy being lifted high, little daughter? ’Tis one thing you cannot do on your own.”
Mary could not help but giggle.
“I want you to remember who helps you out of bogs. It is found in the second verse of David’s fortieth Psalm—‘He,’ meaning our heavenly Father, ‘brought me up also out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings.’”

*I received a copy of this book for my honest thoughts.

[Cheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

My rating would have been much higher... but then I got to the end and found out that huge parts of the story were fictional. I know that doesn’t bother everyone but I really don’t like it when I am told the story of someone real and it is fictionalized. I don’t mind when some artistic license is taken to make a biography fit into story form, I don’t mind when a real person is put into the background of a fictional story, but when I thoroughly enjoy a story that is wholly about a person that really lived and feel like I am getting to know a REAL person and then find out half the things were made up, it just doesn’t sit well with me. It was a lovely story and would have been passed on to my daughter if it had all been true. It does say “based on” on the cover so I was a little worried this might be the case, but I hoped most of it was true.

[Melanie Mead · Rating 5 out of 5]

After reading Little Pilgrim's Progress with my nine year old, I looked and looked for a children's book about John Bunyan without success. But I found this book on our shelf which is a historical fiction book about the life of his daughter which included lots of information about John Bunyan himself. My daughter and I loved it! It was a great story which kept our attention and was also packed with historical information about the Bunyans and the times they lived in. It also had a beautiful Christian message woven throughout. I definitely want to check out more books in this series.

[Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is about John Bunyan's blind daughter Mary. It tells of how she came to faith in Christ and the difficulties she underwent as the daughter of John Bunyan. Through the book it shows how Mary learned to trust in Christ to be her strength. The author does not shy away from showing that we are sinners in need of grace and we receive that grace by recognizing our sin and our need for dependance upon Christ. This is a great book for a young girl to read.

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this aloud to my son as part of our homeschool. Although the story and the protagonist’s journey were well conceived, I struggled with the amount of dialogue in this book. There was very little description of the setting, so it was hard to feel a part of the time. I also felt the story wasn’t as unified and clear as it could have been. However, the message that we must rely on God to help us came through loud and clear.

[Kara Kuehl · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Daughters of the Faith books never seem to fail in entertaining my thirst for a good book as well as for a spiritual lesson and application. I love the theme of saying "I can do all things" and eventually realizing that she should be saying "I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength." I think that is very relatable. Often we can get caught up in our problems and forget to surrender them to God and allow Him to take control.

[Helen Hollis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short book loosely based (according to the author) on the life of John Bunyan, who wrote Pilgrim’s Progress. The main character is Mary, his blind 10 year old daughter. She has tough responsibilities as her mother died, her father was imprisoned, and her young stepmother is pregnant and unwell. Mary stubbornly takes it all on herself. She devised a plan by which to earn money. It worked but in the process she had to learn humility and interdependence with the rest of her family.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

An absorbing read. I could visualize/feel Mary's world. It is described well without getting bogged down in detailed description. To imagine the sound of colors and picture words, I take so much for granted having sight. John Bunyan's love for his family was palpable and I loved Sofia and her relatives.

[Elise · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I read this I was way younger than I am now, and I really enjoyed it. I still enjoy it whenever I read it.
It doesn't have a big plot, or lots of action, but it is good enough for me to still read it every now and then. Like Freedom's Pen, I would recommend this for people aged 7-10.

[The Book Distiller · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent historical fiction book on the life of Mary Bunyan. Most recent publishing has a beautiful book cover (this current book cover featured on Goodreads is an old cover).

Encouraging read for children and adults alike!

[Katrina Mast · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book. The fact that she is blind adds some neat mystery to the story. She slips up at least one time and describes something that Mary would've had no way of knowing; but mostly she does well at describing things from a blind point of view.

[Becky · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute story of a young girl realizing she can’t do everything alone.

[Dakota Smith]

👂🏻📖

[Sydney Mead · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short but good historical fiction book in the Daughters of the Faith Series.

[Talea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great little encouraging story about Mary Bunyan, the daughter of John Bunyan. It’s loosely based on her experiences taking soup to her father while he was jailed.

[Carla Brown · Rating 2 out of 5]

Cute story, but the writing quality was well below our usual fare, especially the dialogue, which was a jarring mix of modern vernacular and a caricature of old English.

[B Shelton · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice advanced reader children’s book. It tells the embellished tale of Mary Bunyan. Mary Bunyan is the blind daughter of author John Bunyan of Pilgrim’s Progress fame.

[Rosalia Ehlert · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book had an amazing message! Always push forward and let others help. We cannot do all things by ourselves ❤️

[Natasha Davidson · Rating 5 out of 5]

a little childish for me but it also a history read where you can learn

[Jan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun light historical fiction that I listened to in the car. It would be a good story to read together with a young daughter. It has a positive message.

[Anete Ābola · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book, but I am just not into historical fiction. Too much fiction to know what detail is real and what is not.

[Heather · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book takes a handful of facts about John Bunyan's daughter and some historical background and mixes it largely with pure fiction. If you're looking for historical fiction, this book might appeal to you. If you are looking for a biography, this is not the book for you. I was looking for a biography which is what I was led to believe it was by the description given on the back of the book. This book also covers only about a month in Mary's life, which is another reason why it will not serve as a biography.

Perhaps the bigger problem with this book is how it portrays Mary's supposed conversion/change of heart. She starts out as very self-reliant, continually quoting to herself "I can do all things" without finishing the verse. I expected her to see that she needed Christ and that again is what the back cover of the book led me to expect. However, what happened is more fuzzy, but was largely about seeing how she needed other people's help. The gospel was communicated by a gypsy family in the story, but her own [fictional] change of heart was lacking in gospel-emphasis.

It is good to learn that God places people in our lives to help us, but that is not the same as learning our own sin and our need of the Savior and this book tended to confuse those two things. The first is recognized by many non-Christians, the second is the only way to become right with God.

[Tarissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found Mary Bunyan's story very interesting. She was a blind girl, and she had an independent spirit. This book is only a fictional account of her life. Her papa, the famous John Bunyan (author of Pilgrims' Progress) was a preacher. Mary is proud to say he is her father, even when he gets in trouble with the authorities and is sent to prison, because he is doing good works. Mary believes in God, but she also thinks she can handle life by herself, without extra guidance. However, that is not where this story steers Mary. Someone new steps into her life to teach her a lesson.

[Mary Bronson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this was a pretty good book. I really enjoyed reading it. I thought it was a nice quick read. I loved Mary Bunyan as a person. Even though she was blind she thought she could do everything and tired her best. It was awesome to know this based off a real person. It was sad to read that she did not live into adulthood. Her true story was that while her father was in prison she would bring him soup everyday. I thought it was interesting of Wendy Lawton to add gypsies into the story and have them help Mary to try and make money for her family.

[Paige Edge · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mary Bunyan is so much like me in my life!! Always wondering if God really loves her father, John. Though she is blind, she never gives up hope to go, every day, and give her father food, and the hope that he might one day be freed. I found this book the most like me. I love this book!!!!!