Fiction_L Archives Children's book - Creatures with bowls on top of head Dates: 2/5/03,1:11 PM  through  2/6/03,1:39 PM  (6 postings) Search for: Select one or more indexes to search: 2011-current     2009-2010     2004-2008    1995-2003    (Matches from each index will be displayed separately in the results page.) Return to February 2003 thread menu   |    Fiction_L Archives Menu

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FROM: "Evansdale Public Library" <[removed]@mchsi.com>
REC'D: 2/5/03, 1:11 PM

Hi all.

I have a patron in search of a book that she swears she read when she
was a child. She needs this title to prove her sanity to her family.

She explained that it was a book written for children and was about
small little creatures with attached bowls on their heads. They needed
to keep water inside the bowls at all times or they would die.

Does this sound familiar to anyone? I’m at a complete loss…

Thanks in advance for any help you can throw our way!

Shannon Surly
Library Director
 
Evansdale Public Library
123 North Evans Road
Evansdale, Iowa 50707
(319) 232-5367
 
http://cv.commonline.net/evansdalepubliclibrary (Currently down--New
site in progress)
[removed]@mchsi.com
 
--
All mail from this computer is virus checked, before being sent, by
Norton Antivirus
 
 
 

FROM: Dennis Lien <[removed]@tc.umn.edu>
REC'D: 2/5/03, 2:57 PM

At 01:08 PM 2/5/03 -0600, you wrote:

>She explained that it was a book written for children and was about
>small little creatures with attached bowls on their heads. They needed
>to keep water inside the bowls at all times or they would die.

There's a Japanese river demon (or stream demon) that has this
property, but I can't recall the name, and I don't know of any
children's book about them. (I first heard of them in an adult
fantasy short story I read a few months ago, possibly by Esther
Friesner, title and source forgotten.) If I can find the story
again, perhaps the name of the beings (assuming these are the
same as in the hypothetical children's book) will provide a
clue.

Wait a moment, memory just hit--I think the water-bowl-on-head
demons are called "kappa" or "kappas." Try a web search and/or
WorldCat search on that. (I'm at home today and have only
email access here at present, so can't check further myself
until tomorrow.)

Dennis Lien / U of Minnesota Libraries // [removed]@tc.umn.edu

FROM: [removed]@wepl.lib.oh.us
REC'D: 2/5/03, 3:18 PM

Following Dennis' lead, I checked our catalog and came across a reference of a children's book
"Kappa Kazoeuta" by Yasuo Segawa .
English title "Kappa Counting Song"
Subject heading: Kappa (Japanese Water Goblin) -- Juvenile Fiction

Kathy Dugan
Technology/Public Services Manager
Willoughby-Eastlake Public Library
263 E. 305 Street
Willowick, OH 44095
(440) 944-6900 ext 113

----- Original Message -----
From: Dennis Lien <[removed]@tc.umn.edu>
Date: Wednesday, February 5, 2003 5:39 pm
Subject: re: Children's book - Creatures with bowls on top of head

> At 01:08 PM 2/5/03 -0600, you wrote:
>
> >She explained that it was a book written for children and was about
> >small little creatures with attached bowls on their heads. They
> needed>to keep water inside the bowls at all times or they would die.
>
>
> There's a Japanese river demon (or stream demon) that has this
> property, but I can't recall the name, and I don't know of any
> children's book about them. (I first heard of them in an adult
> fantasy short story I read a few months ago, possibly by Esther
> Friesner, title and source forgotten.) If I can find the story
> again, perhaps the name of the beings (assuming these are the
> same as in the hypothetical children's book) will provide a
> clue.
>
> Wait a moment, memory just hit--I think the water-bowl-on-head
> demons are called "kappa" or "kappas." Try a web search and/or
> WorldCat search on that. (I'm at home today and have only
> email access here at present, so can't check further myself
> until tomorrow.)
>
> Dennis Lien / U of Minnesota Libraries // [removed]@tc.umn.edu
>
> ......................................................................
> Need to subscribe, unsubscribe, search the archives?
> Everything Fiction_L: http://fictionl.webrary.org
>

FROM: Dennis Lien <[removed]@tc.umn.edu>
REC'D: 2/6/03, 10:27 AM

At 04:13 PM 2/5/03 -0500, you wrote:
>Following Dennis' lead, I checked our catalog and came across a reference
of a children's book
>"Kappa Kazoeuta" by Yasuo Segawa .
>English title "Kappa Counting Song"
>Subject heading: Kappa (Japanese Water Goblin) -- Juvenile Fiction
>
>Kathy Dugan

I've found several other juvenile fiction titles about kappas in
WorldCat now, but all save the following one are in Japanese. (I've
been assuming the book sought is in English; if I'm wrong, let me
know):

Title:
Two stories by Masuji Ibuse.
Author(s):
Ibuse, Masuji, 1898- ; Ibuse, Masuji,; 1898- ; Kappa sodo.;
English.; Ibuse, Masuji,; 1898- ; Life of Mutsugoro
of Noheji.
Publication:
[Tokyo] Hokuseido Press
Year:
1970
Description:
vi, 80 p. 19 cm.
Language:
English
Series:
The "Japanese literature for rapid reading" series,; 1;
Contents:
Catching a "kappa," or water imp.--The life of Mutsugoro of Noheji.
Standard No:
LCCN: 72-197735

I also found a short story apparently about kappas in English in the
Marion Zimmer Bradley ed. pb anthology SWORD AND SORCERESS XVI (DAW,
1999; "The Kappa's Gift" by Fujiko). This again would be intended
for adults rather than children.

The Esther Friesner short fantasy involving a kappa that I mentioned
yesterday turns out to be "Why I Want to Come to Brewer College,"
from last September's issue of THE MAGAZINE OF FANTASY AND SCIENCE
FICTION, in case anyone is interested.

http://www.tangentonline.com/reviews/magazine.php3?review=678

Another book about a kappa -- but it's adult fiction, not a
children's book -- is THE KAPPA CHILD by Hiromi Goto, winner of
the 2001 Tiptree Award (for exploration of gender roles in
sf and fantasy).

http://www.tiptree.org/2001/winner.html

It's Goto's "second novel about kappas" according to

http://www.booksense.com/people/archive/gotohiromi.jsp

but it's not clear from this interview which was the first--
maybe her THE WATER OF POSSIBILITY?

This Pottermania spinoff apparently discusses kappas:

20.

The Sorcerer's Companion: A Guide to
the Magical World of Harry Potter
from Broadway Books
Price: $10.50

Customer Review:
The Sorcerer's Companion greatly enriches
the experience of reading the Harry Potter
books. Rowling's imagination has a basis in
folklore - this book tells the reader all about
hinkypunks, grindlylows and kappas. <snip>

Here's an English translation of a Japanese children's book on kappas
(apparently not published as a print volume, though)

http://www.sonic.net/~anomaly/oniko/ekappa.htm

There are *lots* of hits on a google.com search of this strategy:

+kappas +japanese +water

but, aside from the hits above, I didn't see any that seemed to
referring to specific English-language fiction, at least in the
first few pages of links.

Dennis Lien / U of Minnesota Libraries // [removed]@tc.umn.edu

FROM: [removed]@eldoradolibrary.org
REC'D: 2/6/03, 11:09 AM

We are lucky to have a Japanese-born woman working in our library; I asked
her about "kappas" and she confirmed that they are creatures in Japanese
folklore. Kappas are river creatures, with shells on their backs, webbed
"hands" and what she described as plates on their heads, which hold the
water they need to survive out of their streams/lakes. She drew a picture
which shows the kappa to look quite a bit like a Ninja Turtle; I wonder if
that is where the idea for the Ninja Turtles originated. Hope this may be
of help.

Connie MIllman
El Dorado County Library

At 02:39 PM 02/05/2003 -0800, you wrote:
>At 01:08 PM 2/5/03 -0600, you wrote:
>
> >She explained that it was a book written for children and was about
> >small little creatures with attached bowls on their heads. They needed
> >to keep water inside the bowls at all times or they would die.
>
>
>There's a Japanese river demon (or stream demon) that has this
>property, but I can't recall the name, and I don't know of any
>children's book about them. (I first heard of them in an adult
>fantasy short story I read a few months ago, possibly by Esther
>Friesner, title and source forgotten.) If I can find the story
>again, perhaps the name of the beings (assuming these are the
>same as in the hypothetical children's book) will provide a
>clue.
>
>Wait a moment, memory just hit--I think the water-bowl-on-head
>demons are called "kappa" or "kappas." Try a web search and/or
>WorldCat search on that. (I'm at home today and have only
>email access here at present, so can't check further myself
>until tomorrow.)
>
>Dennis Lien / U of Minnesota Libraries // [removed]@tc.umn.edu
>
>......................................................................
>Need to subscribe, unsubscribe, search the archives?
>Everything Fiction_L: http://fictionl.webrary.org

FROM: [removed]@juno.com
REC'D: 2/6/03, 1:39 PM

This is almost certainly NOT the children's story originally requested, but I think the short story Dennis L. alluded to may be "Why I Want to Come to Brewer College", by Esther M. Friesner, which appeared in the Sept. 2002 issue of Fantasy & Science Fiction magazine. That's probably why the description sounded vaguely familiar to me, although I couldn't remember why until I read Dennis's message.

A very enjoyable story, though not necessarily for kids. I don't think I've ever read of one of THOSE things being used as a demon-fighting implement before.

Bradley A. Scott
Northern Michigan University

> There's a Japanese river demon (or stream demon) that has this
> property, but I can't recall the name, and I don't know of any
> children's book about them. (I first heard of them in an adult
> fantasy short story I read a few months ago, possibly by Esther
> Friesner, title and source forgotten.) If I can find the story
> again, perhaps the name of the beings (assuming these are the
> same as in the hypothetical children's book) will provide a
> clue.
.....

> Dennis Lien / U of Minnesota Libraries // [removed]@tc.umn.edu

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