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The Lesser Blessed

By: Richard Van Camp
Narrated by: Kris Koscheski
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Publisher's summary

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 16, 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.

©1996 Richard Van Camp (P)2013 Audible, Inc.
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Editorial reviews

In his performance of Richard Van Camp's The Lesser Blessed, Kris Koscheski captures the versatile voice of a funny, idiosyncratic teenager who grew up within the Dogrib Nation of Canada. The author’s ancestral tradition of oral storytelling shines through in his writing, which in turn flourishes in the audiobook format.

Koscheski has performed over 400 audiobooks and has been the recipient of numerous awards and Grammy nominations for his voice work. His youthful and sympathetic performance of this sometimes obscene coming-of-age novel makes protagonist Larry Soles intensely relatable to listeners.

In his native Canada, Van Camp is well known and has seen this first novel made into a film.

What listeners say about The Lesser Blessed

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Raw Coming of Age Story

This is a powerful coming of age story. It is very raw and carefully crafted.

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a beautiful story

The near raider was beautiful he captured the native a way of life so perfectly. The author really brought Larry to life for me I worried about the young man I cared for the young man and there were lots of twists to the story that kept me intrigued.

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Stories Within Stories

I recommend this to anyone who enjoys storytelling. It has added layers of meaning rising, as it does, from the author's cultural landscape. The narrator does a wonderful job with this memorable book.

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