What Toys Can Tell Us
Story Time
Good Books for Bigs and Littles
One of my favorite children’s books is The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams. I have an old copy, beautifully illustrated by Michael Hague, that my parents gave me when I was little. Now, I read that same copy to my daughter. Reading this book again (and again) as an adult, new things strike me. I see, for example, how the velveteen rabbit’s trajectory is emblematic of the historical context of the time. Just as the bunny goes through a process of suffering that eventually renders him broken but real, so too would many of Williams’ readers; the book was published only four years after the end of World War I. I’m also struck by the intensity of the emotions, the sadness and loneliness that the rabbit experiences, and how well his story captures the feelings of separation from a beloved parent. In fact, it dawned on me while reading this book to my daughter that The Velveteen Rabbit employs a technique often found in children’s books: The toy (or imaginary friend) is a screen onto which the child’s thoughts and emotions are projected. The imaginary being can express what the real one cannot. In The Velveteen Rabbit, this is done so beautifully and so poignantly: Through the boot button eyes of the rabbit, readers experience isolation, acceptance, loss, and redemption, and the painful ebb of innocence.
Seeing this technique employed in The Velveteen Rabbit caused me to recognize it in other children’s books we’ve been reading. Both of the following are hits at my house.
Illustration by Michael Hague
Pheobe and Digger
Phoebe and Digger, written by Tricia Springstubb and illustrated by Jeff Newman, is a classic Man vs. New Baby plot: “When Mama got a new baby, Phoebe got a new digger.” Digger becomes Phoebe’s companion while her mother’s attention and energy are focused on her new little brother. Unfortunately, Digger (piloted by Phoebe) doesn’t always make the best choices. This lands Phoebe in time out and then at the mercy of a playground bully. Fear not, however. Both Digger and Phoebe are rescued, and Phoebe is returned to her happy place: her mother’s arms.
Illustration by Jeff Newman
Me and My Fear
Me and My Fear is another great book by Francesca Sanna . (Check out my blog post on Sanna’s book The Journey here.) Me and My Fear, also wonderfully illustrated, features a young girl who is having trouble fitting in after immigrating to a new country. Fear, her constant companion, has grown to gargantuan proportions as a result. In a book for grown-ups, fear would be an abstract thing, but in Sanna’s tale, fear is squishy and cute, if somewhat obstructive. Things begin to change for the better when the girl at the center of the story makes a friend and realizes she isn’t the only one with a super-sized invisible friend.
Illustration by Francesca Sanna
What the Toy Tells You
Reflecting on these stories, I thought about my own children and how some of their toys function in their lives. For a while, my daughter loved playing with babies and I could see in her tenderness with them a nostalgia for being a baby herself. Often she would ask me if she was as big or as small as her baby doll when she was born. Then we would talk about our life together when she was a baby (and the only child) and she would smile.
Sometimes she plays classroom, which gives me a window into her daily routines, and sometimes she wants to stage a performance, which I think is just her being crazy. At times she is absorbed in her artwork and her expressions belong to the paper and paint.
My son, for some reason, is obsessed with gloves—of any and all kinds. Occasionally, he uses them while “cleaning” around the house, but often he just wears them to wear them. He enjoys hammering pegs and, when he can’t find his red hammer, pretends to hammer other things with other blunt instruments. He also loves fire hats and fire trucks, as well as dump trucks. From all of this, I surmise that my son is a person for whom occupation will be important.
What do your children’s toys tell you? Share in the Comments section below.
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