Mary Had a Little Lamp
Today my daughter and I enjoyed a new version of a classic nursery song. In Jack Lechner’s Mary Had a Little Lamp, a cute and curious little girl named Mary has something that she likes to carry around, much like some children like to tote their dolls, binkies, or blankies with them. In my case, it was a pink monchichi; in Mary’s case, it’s a bendy desk lamp!
Her little desk lamp looks much like any student lamp might look, with its long bendable neck, round base, and steady stream of light. Mary loves her lamp so much that she totes it around wherever she goes, from school to the zoo to everywhere in between. She loves to trace its base, but most of all she loves its light.
Everyone is confounded with Mary’s lamp, but what can they do about it? When her parents take her to a psychiatrist, he recommends an electrician! But Mary will not be deterred; she will carry her lamp with her wherever, whenever, despite the protests of her colorful parents and others. She even tries to swing it on the swings (which doesn’t work out so well) and pull it down the slide. Finally, when Mary attends camp, she leaves the lamp behind and forgets about it—only to acquire yet another appliance at the end of the book as her new token.
Mary is independent and doesn’t care what anyone else thinks, which I love—my daughter was instantly kindred with her. She is also so wonderfully drawn by Bob Staake, with a round, friendly face, ponytail, and freckles on her face. My daughter didn’t identify with her skirt, but she appreciated everything else about Mary—especially the way she did her own thing. My daughter is very used to doing her own thing and having other kids wonder at her—but as soon as they have a few minutes to get to know one another, she usually ropes them into whatever game of pretend that she’s into at the moment. I would imagine that Mary would be the same way.
Mary Had a Little Lamp is a wonderful picture book for little kids—both boys and girls!—who are not afraid to be who they are—or better yet, for kids who need a little reminder to be themselves no matter what. It’s okay to love lamps; it’s okay to be different.