This picture of Carol Kendall was taken immediately after Mythcon 24.
She is wearing the Mythcon t-shirt featuring Sylvia Hunnewell's drawing of Muggles, a character from Kendall's novel, The Gammage Cup, writing in her "Maxims."
Photo by Lenander, used by permission.
I have NO idea of Carol Kendall EXCEPT she wrote my favorite story of all time, The Other Side of the Tunnel. I was 10 years old when I read and committed to memory that wonderful story. I determined then and there, 1958, that if I ever had a daughter I would name her Heather Lynn. Nine years later I did just that. I had the library copy of that book for years. Then I made a big mistake. I loaned my "stolen library" copy to a friend. That was about 10 years ago. I had been looking for a copy ever since. I finally found one thru the Barnes and Noble "books out of print" I was thrilled as was my daughter, Heather Lynn. Needless to say, my book stealing days long past, I was looking for any other books that she may have written and by coincidence found your web page. If by happenstance she is still alive, and you know how to get in touch with her please let her know she provided a little southern girl with hours of enjoyment. I have always been grateful. --Gerri [I have forwarded this note to Carol Kendall--David L]
used by permission of the author
Merry Christmas too! I'm spending mine in Pemba. Prizes
given for knowing where that is!
This might not be an unusual thing to find on the back of an envelope if
you were a regular correspondent of Carol Kendall. In the past few years
I have been fortunate to get postcards, little treasures from foreign lands,
every so often when Carol has gone off into the Blue to seek adventure.
Over the years I've accumulated postcards from Tombouctou, Mali, "May
[Tristan] never have to eat porcupine, even though it is considered a great
delicacy in Cameroon-and may you never have to cook it. I speak with great
authority on the subject;" Narssage, Greenland, "I wish to report
a severe shortage of trolls in Iceland, except in bookstores, and none at
all in Greenland;" Qufu, China, "Have you ever tried to write
a postcard while surrounded by 11 children and a grandfather?;" and
San Pedro Sula, Honduras, "I didn't hire any spells from this witch
doctor at Chichicastenargo, at least none I'll ever admit to!"
Warning Carol that I would be writing this introduction, I asked where she was off to next. "Nowhere," came the reply. "Not until I finish Fantasy 4." Fantasy 4 is Carol's working name for her fourth and last Minnipin book. It has been in the works for several years and those of us who enjoy Carol's writing have been waiting patiently for it. The first three Minnipin books are The Gammage Cup (The Minnipins in England), The Whisper of Glocken and The Firelings. Of the first book Andre Norton wrote: "There were the Hobbits of the Hill, the Borrowers and now the Minnipins of Slipper-on-the-Water. Such tales are golden events in the publication of children's stories."
Carol has not been working on her Fantasy 4 only. She is very proud of
her work in translating Chinese folk-tales into English (with Yao-wen Li),
published as Sweet and Sour, as well as her first picture book, The
Wedding of the Rat Family.,
Possibly Carol's greatest contribution to children's literature is her need
to share the fact that non-conformists have a place in society and that
non-conformity is not wrong or evil, but just different. This theme flows
through her books and her talks with children. It is something to which
many of us, through our interest in fantasy or science fiction or children's
literature, can relate.
Keep a sharp ear out at the conference if Carol starts to talk about
her travels. Once you've heard one or two, you'll find yourself repeating
them to your friends. And, by the way, where is "Pemba?"
A Selected Carol Kendall Bibliography
"The Adventures of Curley Green," short story. Jack and
Jill, 1946.
The Black Seven, mystery novel for adults. Harper, 1946.
"How to Revise a Novel," article in Writer's Digest, April,
1946.
The Baby-Snatcher, mystery novel for adults. The Bodley Head, 1952.
(No U.S. ed.)
The Other Side of the Tunnel, adventure-mystery for children. The
Bodley Head, 1956, reprinted 1959, 1973. Abelard-Schuman (U.S. ed.), 1957.
The Gammage Cup, fantasy for children. Harcourt, Brace, 1959. J.M.
Dent (U.K.), under title The Minnipins, 1960. Puffin Books
(U.K.), 1971. Kodansha (Japan), Japanese translation, 1976. HBJ paperback,
reissued 1986, 1990 as an Odyssey Classic. Scholastic pap., 1991. Animation
by Hanna-Barbera, CBS Storybreak (TV), October 3, 1987.
The Big Splash, adventure-mystery for children. Viking, 1960.
The Whisper of Glocken, fantasy for children. Harcourt, Brace, 1965.
HBJ paperback, 1986. The Bodley Head, 1967 (with revised first chapter).
Anglia Television, 13-part series on BBC, with paintings by John Worsley,
June-August 1980.
Sweet and Sour: Tales from China, retold by Carol Kendall and Yao-wen
Li. The Bodley Head, 1978. Houghton Mifflin/Clarion, 1979. Clarion pap,
1990. Various story reprints in Cricket, Pennywhistle Press and The
Reading Connection 1980-1968.
The Firelings, fantasy for children. The Bodley Head, 1981. Atheneum,
1982 (with changes from U.K. ed.) Ace/Berkley pap., 1986.
Haunting Tales from Japan, retold. Illus. with Japanese woodcuts
in color. The Spencer Museum of Art, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS,
1985.
Individual Chinese folk tales, not reprints from Sweet and Sour,
appeared in Cricket in 1986, 1987 and 1990.
The Wedding of the Rat Family, story book, retold from a Chinese
folk tale. Illustrated by James Watts. McElderry/Macmillan, 1988.
Autobiography. Something about the Author, v.7, 1989.
LINKS
David Bratman on Kendall's three novels
Carol's manuscripts are in this library collection, see also a brief bio, etc.: http://www.library.ohiou.edu/libinfo/depts/archives/mss/mss115.htm
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