Mary Mary Quite Contrary

Gloomy Garden – Morbid Mary

Charles Adams, with his inimitable style, gives us a Mary tending a very different kind of garden. While other Marys enjoy fresh air and sunshine, this hallow-eyed, sad-faced Mary tends a mushroom garden in a dark, dank basement. There is no joy here. The only brightness is from a single light bulb hanging from the ceiling off to the right. Some of the mushrooms have sprouted human faces, adding to the eerie quality of this illustration. Could these be poisonous mushrooms Mary is growing?