''Karius and Bactus'' ( no, Karius og Baktus) is a Norwegian children's novel written and illustrated by playwright Thorbjørn Egner. The book was first published in 1949 and produced as a 15-minute puppet animation film by film director Ivo Caprino in 1955. An English translation by Mike Sevig and Turi Olderheim was published in the United States in 1986. The main characters are Karius (black haired) and Bactus (red haired). Their names are puns on Caries and Bacteria, and they are two small "

tooth troll Hammaspeikko ( Finnish for "tooth troll", from ''hammas'' "tooth" and ''peikko'' "troll") is a metaphorical device for explaining tooth decay ( caries) to children. Eating candy lures tooth trolls, which drill holes into teeth and look scary. Br ...

s" that live inside cavities in the teeth of a boy named Jens. They have a very good life, especially when Jens eats white bread with syrup and fails to brush his teeth afterwards. Eventually their homes are destroyed by the work of a

dentist A dentist, also known as a dental surgeon, is a health care professional who specializes in dentistry (the diagnosis, prevention, management, and treatment of diseases and conditions of the mouth, oral cavity and other aspects of the craniofaci ...

and they are rinsed out of Jens' mouth through proper dental care. The story of Karius and Bactus, with its humorous illustrations and important message, has become a classic of Norwegian children's literature. Since its publication, the idea of "tooth trolls" has been used as a pedagogical device for generations of Scandinavian children.

References

Other sources

Thorbjørn Egner (1971) ''Karius og Baktus'' (Oslo: Cappelen)

External links

Karius og Baktus
home.online.no
''Karius and Bactus''
bokmerker.org {{Portal , Children's literature 1949 children's books Children's novels Dentistry education Teeth in fiction 20th-century Norwegian novels Works about dentistry Norwegian children's literature Fictional trolls Literary duos 1949 fantasy novels 1940s fantasy novels