The Lesser Blessed: A Novel - Softcover

Van Camp, Richard

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1550545256 ISBN 13: 9781550545258

Publisher: Douglas & McIntyre, 2004

Synopsis

A fresh, funny look at growing up Native in the North, by award-winning author Richard Van Camp.

Larry is a Dogrib Indian growing up in the small northern town of Fort Simmer. His tongue, his hallucinations and his fantasies are hotter than the sun. At sixteen, he loves Iron Maiden, the North and Juliet Hope, the high school "tramp." When Johnny Beck, a Metis from Hay River, moves to town, Larry is ready for almost anything.
In this powerful and often very funny first novel, Richard Van Camp gives us one of the most original teenage characters in fiction. Skinny as spaghetti, nervy and self-deprecating, Larry is an appealing mixture of bravado and vulnerability. His past holds many terrors: an abusive father, blackouts from sniffing gasoline, an accident that killed several of his cousins. But through his friendship with Johnny, he’s ready now to face his memories and his future.

Marking the debut of an exciting new writer, The Lesser Blessed is an eye-opening depiction of what it is to be a young Native man in the age of AIDS, disillusionment with Catholicism and a growing world consciousness.
A coming-of-age story that any fan of The Catcher in the Rye will enjoy.

About this title

About the Author

An internationally renowned storyteller and best-selling author,Richard Van Campwas born in Fort Smith, NWT, and is a member of the Dogrib (Tlicho) Dene Nation. He acted as a cultural consultant for CBC Television’sNorth of 60. A graduate of the En’owkin School of Writing in Penticton, he completed his BFA in Writing at the University of Victoria and completed his MFA of Creative Writing at the University of British Columbia. Richard was awarded Storyteller of the Year for both Canada and the US by the Wordcraft Circle of Native Writers and Storytellers.

Review

In this powerful and very funny debut novel, author Richard Van Camp gives us one of the most original teenage characters in Canadian fiction... "The Lesser Blessed" is an eye-opening depiction of what it is to be a young Dogrib man in the age of AIDS, disillusionment with Catholicism, and a growing world consciousness. This 20th anniversary edition of a true Canadian literary classic from Douglas & McIntyre is unreservedly recommended." (Midwest Book Review)

"Its halcyon moments are cigarette scorched, and it has teeth―lots of them.
The Lesser Blessed stood apart in 1996, and there has yet to be anything like it." (Booklist)

About this edition

• Publisher: Douglas & McIntyre
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 1550545256
• ISBN 13: 9781550545258
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 128