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The Kappa Child
From the award-winning author of Chorus of Mushrooms, which won the Commonwealth Writers' Prize for Best First Book in the Caribbean and Canadian Region and was co-winner of the Canada Japan Book Award, The Kappa Child is the tale of four Japanese Canadian sisters struggling to escape the bonds of a family and landscape as inhospitable as the sweltering prairie heat.
In a family not at all reminiscent of Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House on the Prairie, four Japanese-Canadian sisters struggle to escape the bonds of a family and landscape as inhospitable as the sweltering prairie heat. Their father, moved by an incredible dream of optimism, decides to migrate from the lush green fields of British Columbia to Alberta. There, he is determined to deny the hard-pan limitations of the prairie and to grow rice. Despite a dearth of both water and love, the family discovers, through sorrow and fear, the green kiss of the Kappa Child, a mythical creature who blesses those who can imagine its magic...
James Tiptree Jr. Memorial Award for Science Fiction and Commonwealth Writers' Prize Winner, 2001
Sunburst Award Nomination for Canadian Literature of the Fantastic, 2002
In a family not at all reminiscent of Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House on the Prairie, four Japanese-Canadian sisters struggle to escape the bonds of a family and landscape as inhospitable as the sweltering prairie heat. Their father, moved by an incredible dream of optimism, decides to migrate from the lush green fields of British Columbia to Alberta. There, he is determined to deny the hard-pan limitations of the prairie and to grow rice. Despite a dearth of both water and love, the family discovers, through sorrow and fear, the green kiss of the Kappa Child, a mythical creature who blesses those who can imagine its magic...
James Tiptree Jr. Memorial Award for Science Fiction and Commonwealth Writers' Prize Winner, 2001
Sunburst Award Nomination for Canadian Literature of the Fantastic, 2002
280 pages, Paperback
First published September 11, 2001
About the author
Hiromi Goto
20 books205 followersHiromi’s first novel, Chorus of Mushrooms (1994), received the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize for Best First Book in the Caribbean and Canada region and was co-winner of the Canada-Japan Book Award. Her short stories and poetry have been widely published in literary journals and anthologies. Her second novel, The Kappa Child (2001), was a finalist for the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize for Best Regional Book, and was awarded the James Tiptree Jr. Memorial Award. Her first children’s novel, The Water of Possibility, was also published that year. Hopeful Monsters, a collection of short stories, was released in 2004. Her YA/Crossover novel, Half World (2009), was long-listed for the IMPAC Dublin Literary Award and received the 2010 Sunburst Award and the Carl Brandon Society Parallax Award. Her long poem, co-written with David Bateman, came out in Fall 2009. Wait Until Late Afternoon is her first book-length poetry publication. Darkest Light, companion book to Half World, will be released in 2012 with Penguin Canada.
Hiromi is an active member of the literary community, a writing instructor, editor and the mother of two children. She has served in numerous writer-in-residencies and is currently in BC, working on Darkest Light.
Hiromi is an active member of the literary community, a writing instructor, editor and the mother of two children. She has served in numerous writer-in-residencies and is currently in BC, working on Darkest Light.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews
February 20, 2017
I really enjoyed Hiromi Goto's two YA novels, Half World and Darkest Light, so I was very excited to read one of her adult books.
But wow, I don't even know where to start describing this one. It opens with the narrator (is she ever named? I don't think so...) heading home to the prairies of Alberta for Easter with her Japanese-Canadian family (mother, father, three sisters). It's the first time she's ever "taken someone else" with her, because she is unexpectedly -- and impossibly -- pregnant.
The story then unfolds in three shifting timelines: Memories of her childhood, when her angry, abusive father moved the family from the city to the prairie to farm rice (futile, so the abuse only escalated). The present, from that Easter forward. And a melange of the recent past, the narrator meeting her two best friends, driving her milk truck to collect abandoned shopping carts, and encountering the Stranger who left her knocked up. And one other occasional story line, about the Kappa, mythical Japanese creatures who love water and rice paddies.
It all sounds messy, but it flows incredibly artfully, with no jarring breaks between "then" and "now." The narrator has a very distinct voice, not always appealing but full of character and identity, despite her conviction that she doesn't quite have either of those things. This is one of the most interesting books I've read in a long time, between the story-telling and the strong and original voice.
The short summary is, this is a book about an adult child of abuse, struggling to find her way out of the wet cottonball of trauma. But that makes it sound too simplistic, and like too many other books. This one tells its story in a truly inspired, creative way that I just loved. With its touches of mystical realism, I'd usually tag a story like this as "too literary for me," but it wasn't. It was amazing.
I really think the test of the book for most people will be whether you can stand the narrator's voice, because it's odd, gritty, and not comfortable. But wow, I'm left with an even bigger author-crush on Hiromi Goto than I had before!
But wow, I don't even know where to start describing this one. It opens with the narrator (is she ever named? I don't think so...) heading home to the prairies of Alberta for Easter with her Japanese-Canadian family (mother, father, three sisters). It's the first time she's ever "taken someone else" with her, because she is unexpectedly -- and impossibly -- pregnant.
The story then unfolds in three shifting timelines: Memories of her childhood, when her angry, abusive father moved the family from the city to the prairie to farm rice (futile, so the abuse only escalated). The present, from that Easter forward. And a melange of the recent past, the narrator meeting her two best friends, driving her milk truck to collect abandoned shopping carts, and encountering the Stranger who left her knocked up. And one other occasional story line, about the Kappa, mythical Japanese creatures who love water and rice paddies.
It all sounds messy, but it flows incredibly artfully, with no jarring breaks between "then" and "now." The narrator has a very distinct voice, not always appealing but full of character and identity, despite her conviction that she doesn't quite have either of those things. This is one of the most interesting books I've read in a long time, between the story-telling and the strong and original voice.
The short summary is, this is a book about an adult child of abuse, struggling to find her way out of the wet cottonball of trauma. But that makes it sound too simplistic, and like too many other books. This one tells its story in a truly inspired, creative way that I just loved. With its touches of mystical realism, I'd usually tag a story like this as "too literary for me," but it wasn't. It was amazing.
I really think the test of the book for most people will be whether you can stand the narrator's voice, because it's odd, gritty, and not comfortable. But wow, I'm left with an even bigger author-crush on Hiromi Goto than I had before!
October 25, 2014
"People say 'childhood' and 'adulthood' with such absolute conviction. Like they are two entirely separate rooms of the four-room bungalow of life. I don't know. I don't know."
This is a beautifully written book. The above quote really struck me. I've never felt that delineation. Aren't there times when you find yourself feeling like a child, repeating old patterns, especially when with your family?
We never learn the main character's name, though we are brought into her remembrances of her abusive childhood, their hard life in the prairies of Alberta, Canada as well as her struggles in the present to interact with and understand her family.
The kappa child does not make an actual appearance in the book, but the main character's pregnancy is integral to her journey to self acceptance and reconciliation with her family.
This is a beautifully written book. The above quote really struck me. I've never felt that delineation. Aren't there times when you find yourself feeling like a child, repeating old patterns, especially when with your family?
We never learn the main character's name, though we are brought into her remembrances of her abusive childhood, their hard life in the prairies of Alberta, Canada as well as her struggles in the present to interact with and understand her family.
The kappa child does not make an actual appearance in the book, but the main character's pregnancy is integral to her journey to self acceptance and reconciliation with her family.
August 17, 2015
Where reality meets the sublime, Goto's gorgeous, insightful prose makes the plight 2nd gen immigrant kids living in impoverished, oppressive family systems incredibly tangible and vivid. Hard to put down.
May 19, 2013
This book is like a real journey. I have never took this much time to read a book of such length but it was necessary. If I rushed through it, I would have missed so many things.
At first, I was not partial toward the main character and, to be frank, I found her disgusting. Her negativity and the overly realistic way in which she described her life, put me off. It was such a strong feeling that a few times I almost wanted to stop reading the book all together. However, what is amazing about "The Kappa Child" is how my perception of the main character changed with her development. The more she was changing herself and understanding the people around her, the more the writing style differed. It was a subtle change but it left a lasting impressions. The negativity and shudder-inducing similes gave way to a more balanced outlook on life. In the end, I actually genuinely started to like the main character and reading the book became a pleasure.
I do think that some people may hate this book. Some people may find it rather shallow as well. However, I think that not only was it written well enough to induce strong emotions in me, it presented its themes successfully and left me satisfied.
At first, I was not partial toward the main character and, to be frank, I found her disgusting. Her negativity and the overly realistic way in which she described her life, put me off. It was such a strong feeling that a few times I almost wanted to stop reading the book all together. However, what is amazing about "The Kappa Child" is how my perception of the main character changed with her development. The more she was changing herself and understanding the people around her, the more the writing style differed. It was a subtle change but it left a lasting impressions. The negativity and shudder-inducing similes gave way to a more balanced outlook on life. In the end, I actually genuinely started to like the main character and reading the book became a pleasure.
I do think that some people may hate this book. Some people may find it rather shallow as well. However, I think that not only was it written well enough to induce strong emotions in me, it presented its themes successfully and left me satisfied.
July 27, 2011
Gorgeous prose, like trickling water. Surprisingly upbeat, considering that it deals with the baggage of coming from an abusive home. Very frank about the indignities of life in general - sometimes a little too frank for my tastes, but I'm a squeamish person.
I really enjoyed this one. I'd recommend it to anyone who enjoys magical realism and can deal with stories featuring an abusive parent.
I really enjoyed this one. I'd recommend it to anyone who enjoys magical realism and can deal with stories featuring an abusive parent.
June 15, 2014
The book is strange, the people are real, the feelings are true.
September 28, 2016
So I've seen a review that started with "Well, I can't keep giving every book 4 stars!".
Yeah, well, WATCH ME. I chanced upon a streak of good books and so help me, I'm gonna enjoy it.
As I was about halfway through Half World, I thought to myself: "I wouldn't mind reading something else by this author."
And I found this. I mean, Japanese-Canadian take on magic realism AND queer representation? With ample reference to Little House on the Prairie Of course I was interested!
I had some mixed feelings about this book at the beginning. Japanese brand of magic realism is decidedly more weird and less incesty than the Western kind, which is great, tbh.
But this story was also very sad and lonely, and oh boy, that was a lot of domestic abuse.
And then, it turned into a hopeful story of gradual change and healing. (And also, this is a story with a protagonist that wear pajamas all day every day (goals!), and lots, lots of lesbians, who are absolutely fine by the end of the story!) And it's wonderful.
Yeah, well, WATCH ME. I chanced upon a streak of good books and so help me, I'm gonna enjoy it.
As I was about halfway through Half World, I thought to myself: "I wouldn't mind reading something else by this author."
And I found this. I mean, Japanese-Canadian take on magic realism AND queer representation? With ample reference to Little House on the Prairie Of course I was interested!
I had some mixed feelings about this book at the beginning. Japanese brand of magic realism is decidedly more weird and less incesty than the Western kind, which is great, tbh.
But this story was also very sad and lonely, and oh boy, that was a lot of domestic abuse.
And then, it turned into a hopeful story of gradual change and healing. (And also, this is a story with a protagonist that wear pajamas all day every day (goals!), and lots, lots of lesbians, who are absolutely fine by the end of the story!) And it's wonderful.
August 15, 2009
Interesting. I had trouble putting this down. At the same time, I felt a little disturbed. Which means it hits the mark.
March 1, 2023
"How your reflection isn't really who you are, just an image of your real self contained in glass. You go your whole life without seeing yourself as you really are. All you know is how you are treated."
Wow.
I was unsure of this book, it was recommended to me by a friend but it seemed something so far out of my comfort zone and I couldn't quite gauge what it was going to be about. I was not prepared to read some of the most beautiful prose I have come across in years, and I was captivated by this book. I kept coming back to it and reading it in short bursts, feeling captivated by the way it was written and wishing I could stay in that world for longer.
Wow.
I was unsure of this book, it was recommended to me by a friend but it seemed something so far out of my comfort zone and I couldn't quite gauge what it was going to be about. I was not prepared to read some of the most beautiful prose I have come across in years, and I was captivated by this book. I kept coming back to it and reading it in short bursts, feeling captivated by the way it was written and wishing I could stay in that world for longer.
May 17, 2021
https://nwhyte.livejournal.com/3637918.html
A complex novel of a Japanese-Canadian girl whose family moves from British Columbia to the harsher landscape of Alberta, trying and failing to farm rice there. The Kappa is a Japanese water creature; the protagonist becomes mysteriously pregnant; she and her sisters are oppressed by their father and by the heat. The plot threads overlap and I found it a little hard to keep track, but I did enjoy the vivid writing.
A complex novel of a Japanese-Canadian girl whose family moves from British Columbia to the harsher landscape of Alberta, trying and failing to farm rice there. The Kappa is a Japanese water creature; the protagonist becomes mysteriously pregnant; she and her sisters are oppressed by their father and by the heat. The plot threads overlap and I found it a little hard to keep track, but I did enjoy the vivid writing.
December 17, 2022
I think in the hands of a poet-hearted reader, this book would have received a much warmer welcome. While I wanted to love it, I just found the language tiresome (so many dashed descriptors!) and the ethereal nature of the story confusing - reading felt like being trapped in a dream and not being able to shake the cobwebs from my brain.
The nuts and bolts of the story are interesting - I was engaged by the narrator's family but not quite enough.
Very cool cover! I didn't notice it at first - my Knopf edition had a hidden surprise that was fun to discover.
The nuts and bolts of the story are interesting - I was engaged by the narrator's family but not quite enough.
Very cool cover! I didn't notice it at first - my Knopf edition had a hidden surprise that was fun to discover.
November 15, 2019
I am stunned by this book.
It is rare that I have such intense feelings of saudade before even finishing a book, which points to how deeply invested I became in the characters. Truly, some of the best character narrative I have ever read.
After reading this book, I am left contemplating whether there truly is a liminality that exists between childhood and adulthood. A rewarding and gorgeous read if you can find yourself a copy.
It is rare that I have such intense feelings of saudade before even finishing a book, which points to how deeply invested I became in the characters. Truly, some of the best character narrative I have ever read.
After reading this book, I am left contemplating whether there truly is a liminality that exists between childhood and adulthood. A rewarding and gorgeous read if you can find yourself a copy.
June 1, 2021
I loved this book!!! It is one of my favourite books of all time. It was written in such a captivating way, the connections between the narrator's childhood and adulthood are immaculate, the characters in this story are very complex, and the overall storyline and metaphors used to support the story line are all amazing. This book is the best thing ever.
May 21, 2018
I couldn't get very far in this book. From the details of nose-picking to snot bubbles to diarrhea sludging down her legs, it got more disgusting as it went on. Not in a tasteful, life-is-hard way, but as if the author was trying to win a gradeschool gross-you-out contest. Nope, hard pass....
March 3, 2020
I made sure to take my time with this book because it was so beautifully written. Gorgeous postmodern magical realism vibes, really leaves you with a lot to think/wonder about and a lot of meaning to sift through. Utterly strange and perfectly enjoyable.
Read
May 15, 2023Beautiful and charming even though I don't usually enjoy magical realism.
Favourite excerpt: "People say 'childhood' and 'adulthood' with such absolute conviction. Like they are two entirely separate rooms of the four-room bungalow of life."
Favourite excerpt: "People say 'childhood' and 'adulthood' with such absolute conviction. Like they are two entirely separate rooms of the four-room bungalow of life."
September 9, 2023
Somehow, sitting here 5 mins after closing this book, tears are coming to my eyes. It will take a lifetime to understand, and then get over, the beauty and complexity of what I have just read, I think.
October 11, 2017
Without a doubt the weirdest book I've ever read. It made me wish I was in grad school again so I could write a paper about it. It also made me crave cucumbers like nobody's business!
January 30, 2018
A whimsical, quirky and breathtaking journey. Loved it so much, I almost got a Kappa tattoo! ;)
October 7, 2019
Interesting. A journey of overcoming trauma, accepting love, and second chances.
May 24, 2020
Tiptree Winner 2001
November 2, 2021
*3.5 stars
Read
February 18, 2017The main character may or may not be pregnant with the child of a female kappa (river imp). It only gets weirder from there. Hiromi Goto combines mythology with everyday life (and throws in some UFOs for some reason). This book is all about relationships between women of all kinds: grown up sisters, mothers and daughters, friends, and couples. At first, I found the main character and the writing style irritating but I came to care about her.
August 12, 2020
I preferred this to "Chorus of Mushrooms", and although Joy Kogawa's "Obasan" is the quintessential Japanese Canadian text taught at school in Canada, I think that "Kappa Child" is also one that should be taught. It captures the post-WWII experience of Japanese and Japanese Canadians who were forced to settle east in a manner that highlights the terrible ways in which the Japanese communities were treated.
I read this a few years after I finished my MA as I needed a bit space from Japanese North American lit.
I read this a few years after I finished my MA as I needed a bit space from Japanese North American lit.
June 8, 2016
Again, I find that a three star is a compromise and thus I am prompted to write a review. I am a big fan of magical realism and thus was really looking forward to reading this book.
I really liked the writing style of the book, the way Hiromi Goto captured the spirit of Calgary, the intreplay between the quirky life of her main character, tough prairie existence of her childhood and Japanese folklore, as well as those little fleeting true to life moments that make the narrative real and touching. All these strong points made me enchanted with the book. Until the last couple of chapters...
I found the ending quite weak for such a great book (and my built-up expectations). It felt like the author got tired with writing and decided to quickly wrap up all remaining loose ends, while glaringly missing the main one. The happy ending was also a bit of a stretch and felt false.
Nevertheless, it was still a very enjoyable and original read and I am glad that I finally came around to this book.
I really liked the writing style of the book, the way Hiromi Goto captured the spirit of Calgary, the intreplay between the quirky life of her main character, tough prairie existence of her childhood and Japanese folklore, as well as those little fleeting true to life moments that make the narrative real and touching. All these strong points made me enchanted with the book. Until the last couple of chapters...
I found the ending quite weak for such a great book (and my built-up expectations). It felt like the author got tired with writing and decided to quickly wrap up all remaining loose ends, while glaringly missing the main one. The happy ending was also a bit of a stretch and felt false.
Nevertheless, it was still a very enjoyable and original read and I am glad that I finally came around to this book.
November 4, 2007
i read this for Think Galactic, and liked it well enough but didn't love it to death or anything. there were a few really stand-out moments though, but i think if anything i felt like too big a story was trying to be told in too short a novel. it tries to span all these years of the main character (whose name we never learn, which irritates me)'s life, from her childhood with her sisters, abusive father, and mother on a farm in alberta, to her adulthood when she has a strange pregnancy and also having weird issues with her two best friends and has a job finding stray shopping carts. everything seemed a bit incomplete, and often bits of the story seemed thrown in for no plot-related reason.
this won the Tiptree, but i can't really think of any amazing gender related insights in the book. the characters spanned a lot of gender expression and crap but i think more than that should be needed to get a Tiptree, so maybe i'm just missing something.
this won the Tiptree, but i can't really think of any amazing gender related insights in the book. the characters spanned a lot of gender expression and crap but i think more than that should be needed to get a Tiptree, so maybe i'm just missing something.
October 12, 2016
I’ve never read any of the “Little House on the Prairie” books but I understand the general gist from having seen a few episodes of the TV series back in my youth. They represent a child’s view growing up in prairie homesteading days written for children. The main, unnamed character of “The Kappa Child” is a bit obsessed with the book. So when her Canadian family of Japanese descent moves from the lush metropolitan Vancouver, BC to the Canadian prairie, of course she’s going to compare and refer a lot to her favorite book. But the worlds couldn’t be any more different, with her father’s dream of growing rice rather than something that would actually flourish. And her father is abusive to the children and the mother.
Come visit my blog for the full review:
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Come visit my blog for the full review:
http://itstartedwiththehugos.blogspot...
December 20, 2020
This has to be one of my favorite books ever. It's really weird, sometimes sci-fi, sometimes immigrant story, always enthralling though.
The writing is broken into two voices (not POV, but as in tones) where one voice is just the narrator telling the story, and then the other is possibly the kappa's voice, which is super mystical and poetic and foggy sounding.
There's a ton of representation in this, queerness, race, sexuality, age, it goes through all kinds of different stories while mainly focusing on our first generation Japanese protagonist.
The writing is broken into two voices (not POV, but as in tones) where one voice is just the narrator telling the story, and then the other is possibly the kappa's voice, which is super mystical and poetic and foggy sounding.
There's a ton of representation in this, queerness, race, sexuality, age, it goes through all kinds of different stories while mainly focusing on our first generation Japanese protagonist.
June 13, 2007
The Kappa Child is awesome. Drawing from Japanese folklore, Goto weaves a story of fantasical realism that draws at least somewhat from her own childhood in a Japanese Canadian immigrant family. The family tiptoes around an abusive father, and Goto explores the impact of childhood on adulthood, the meaning of family, and finding one's own path in the world. Great book.
June 11, 2007
One of my absolute all time favorite books! The author is Japanese Canadian lesbian and I was given the esteemed honor of (almost) meeting her during Madison's annual Wiscon Feminist Science Fiction convention. She approached the table I was selling books at, and all I could mutter was a very meek, "hi." which she returned in the same nature.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews