Book of the Week: 'Gadoo the Cat: An Armenian Folk Tale'

‘Gadoo the Cat; An Armenian Folk Tale’
By Susan Kadian Gopigian
Illustrated by Susan Collier Bolt
Bloomfield Hills, Mich.: Shoushan Books, 2008: 37 pp.
Distributed by Wayne State University Press

For more than 50 years, Susan Gopigian collected Armenian proverbs and folklore, and in 2008, published her first children’s book, Gadoo the Cat. Gopigian, once a kindergarten teacher, tells the tale of a cat who, despite all her training to act like a human, still behaves like a cat.

“This tale was heard in a family setting many years ago from a gathering of unlettered Armenian villagers born in the 19^th century,” writes Gopigian.

At the heart of this story is an Armenian proverb, “Gadoon vor gadoo e, mugeen yedeven ga vaze,” which translates to, “The cat which is a cat, will run after a mouse.” In Gopigian’s words, the message here is that “you can’t change instinctive nature because some things are as they are.”

The folktale is illustrated by Susan Bolt, an accomplished artist who for over 60 years has experimented with various art forms. She’s taught printmaking at Wayne State University, has illustrated for the Detroit Free Press Sunday Magazine for seven years, and has worked as a freelance illustrator; among her clients were the J.L. Hudson Company and Hallmark Greeting Cards.

Gadoo the Cat begins with the traditional “It happened or it didn’t happen” (“Gar ou chgar” in Armenian, “Kan wa ma kan” in Arabic), which is an old gateway to a magical, strange, and colorful world. And a final warning bell that a tale is about to be told.

***

At a gathering of great kings, one with a “questioning mind” asked, “What is more important, what you are born or what you learn?”

A debate ensued between two mighty kings. The tall one said what you learn is what you are; while the short one disagreed. The two kings agreed to set out to prove which of them was right. “After all, when one is king, he is taught that he is never wrong!”

The king who believed that you are what you are taught had a cat named “Gadoo.” The talented Gadoo acted human, and received lessons from the king in “the art of attending him formally and royally.”

“… The sleek, beautiful Gadoo actually learned to serve her master meza (appetizers), abour (soup), kebob (barbecued meat), and baklava (dessert). She even graciously balanced his after-dinner sourj (Armenian coffee) with sugar, cream, and fruit on an ornate silver tray.”

Finally, the day of the great banquet arrived, when the two kings would present their proof. Gadoo, “the crowning jewel of this extravaganza,” draped in silk and lace, and adorned with jewels, served the after-dinner coffee.

And right then and there, “The short, portly king…while flashing a sly grin…suddenly flung out of his fully gathered royal-purple velvet robe, a tiny, four-legged creature…A MOUSE!”

Of course, Gadoo the cat behaved gadoo-like, proving what the tall, mustached king had set out to disprove.

***

Gopigian, who has a master’s degree in education from Wayne State University, writes, “It is often assumed that folktales were meant for children. Quite the contrary! Storytelling was a means of communicating to all family members, who often lived under the same roof.”

So, share this curious Armenian folktale with your family and friends. Children will love the storyline, while adults might find themselves discussing the message in the book, and share some folktales of their own.

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Nanore Barsoumian

Nanore Barsoumian was the editor of the Armenian Weekly from 2014 to 2016. She served as assistant editor of the Armenian Weekly from 2010 to 2014. Her writings focus on human rights, politics, poverty, and environmental and gender issues. She has reported from Armenia, Nagorno-Karabagh, Javakhk and Turkey. She earned her B.A. degree in Political Science and English and her M.A. in Conflict Resolution from the University of Massachusetts (Boston).