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xpauliex's review against another edition
challenging
funny
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
sjklass's review against another edition
3.0
Larry is a sensitive teen growing up in a harsh environment. Alcohol and drug experimentation. Dances, fights and sex. Short disjointed chapters at the beginning make more sense on second reading. Some poetic passages and other blunt, violently brutal scenes and also low-brow funny dialogues between the characters.
katimae's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
tiffani_reads's review against another edition
1.0
If I didn't have to read this for class, I would have put it down after the first few pages. Thankfully it is a short book because I was bored out of my mind reading it. I know it deals with important issues in the First Nations community but I feel like the way this novel was pitched to me did not live up to the hype. I kept waiting to find out what this accident was and what actually happened but you never find out beyond some sketchy details that may or may not be true because the "flashbacks" happen during blackouts. The entire plot of this book is basically Larry trying to have sex with Juliet and when he succeeds the book ends.... ummmm.... ok. Overall, I was not impressed and will most likely never read this book again or recommend it to anyone.
newfgirl's review against another edition
5.0
This book is now 20 years old but still a relevant book and in my opinion, a high school must read.
I really connected with Larry, who haunted by the past choices, dreams about about a classmates and eventually becomes with with the class rebel.
Scarred mentally and physically Larry must navigate through life pining for a girl, wishing his mom would make a commitment to her boyfriend and understanding his friend.
I really loved this book but my wish was that it had been longer as I wanted to know how Larry entered adulthood and the if his mom married Jeb. Sequel maybe?
Richard Van Camp--- Sequel please :)
Miigwech
I really connected with Larry, who haunted by the past choices, dreams about about a classmates and eventually becomes with with the class rebel.
Scarred mentally and physically Larry must navigate through life pining for a girl, wishing his mom would make a commitment to her boyfriend and understanding his friend.
I really loved this book but my wish was that it had been longer as I wanted to know how Larry entered adulthood and the if his mom married Jeb. Sequel maybe?
Richard Van Camp--- Sequel please :)
Miigwech
greatlibraryofalexandra's review against another edition
3.0
I appreciate this and really valued its cultural impact. The insight into the mental health and generational trauma of the children of residential schooled indigenous people was grim and instructive. The relationship between Larry and his (almost) stepfather was heartwarming to read.
However, it’s pretty obvious the author was 19 when he wrote this, and for me it was unpleasant to spend this much time in a teenage boys head. From the way he talked about women / thought about women to the over used punctuation, it wasn’t an enjoyable read for me from that standpoint. It was very juvenile in a way that often made me cringe. YA but with R-rated content.
That said, I do want to note that the sex scene was an ACHIEVEMENT in writing. Well done. This is certainly a modern Canadian/indigenous classic and worth a read.
However, it’s pretty obvious the author was 19 when he wrote this, and for me it was unpleasant to spend this much time in a teenage boys head. From the way he talked about women / thought about women to the over used punctuation, it wasn’t an enjoyable read for me from that standpoint. It was very juvenile in a way that often made me cringe. YA but with R-rated content.
That said, I do want to note that the sex scene was an ACHIEVEMENT in writing. Well done. This is certainly a modern Canadian/indigenous classic and worth a read.
jennifer_k's review against another edition
3.0
I read this for a first year University English class.
Once again this book was just average. While I appreciate the story it tells there was nothing striking or captivating about the plot line. This just happens to be a collection of stories told over the course of a broader story. If I'm being completely honest I was kind of let down, this was not at all what I had anticipated it to be. Overall, this book wasn't necessarily bad but it wasn't amazing either.
Once again this book was just average. While I appreciate the story it tells there was nothing striking or captivating about the plot line. This just happens to be a collection of stories told over the course of a broader story. If I'm being completely honest I was kind of let down, this was not at all what I had anticipated it to be. Overall, this book wasn't necessarily bad but it wasn't amazing either.
gitli57's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
3.0
Our best Indig writers can place a story in an extremely bleak setting and, somehow, still make it life affirming. RvC does that here. The traumas and struggles of adolescent Indig characters from dysfunctional, poor families is familiar stuff. But The Lesser Blessed holds up pretty well 25 years on. It's a short novel at just 137 pages and this "20th Anniversary Edition" fills things out by including two short stories that are set in the same town and feature characters from the novel. Small town First Nations folks' struggles in late 20th Century Canada. It's cold. And you have to love a short Christmas story that begins "Things to do today: Get laid"
Content warnings for drug abuse, physical violence, animal death and explicit sexual encounter
NOTE: I came back in and changed my rating from 3.5 to 3 because as I thought back over the book, I didn't find the women characters convincing.
Content warnings for drug abuse, physical violence, animal death and explicit sexual encounter
NOTE: I came back in and changed my rating from 3.5 to 3 because as I thought back over the book, I didn't find the women characters convincing.
private_reader's review against another edition
5.0
Sooooo good. Definitely edgy but fine for upper YA.
This is the kind of book that makes me want content labels for YA. The content is keeping it out of YA when so many young readers would get so much out of it.
Literally it ticks pretty much all my boxes – culturally diverse author, culturally diverse lead, lead with a body diversity (he has been badly burned), working class, remote setting. It’s Canadian Content up the wazoo.
And it’s SHORT. Probably less than 40,000 words. And short “chapters” So great for “reluctant”.
An all around win.
This is the kind of book that makes me want content labels for YA. The content is keeping it out of YA when so many young readers would get so much out of it.
Literally it ticks pretty much all my boxes – culturally diverse author, culturally diverse lead, lead with a body diversity (he has been badly burned), working class, remote setting. It’s Canadian Content up the wazoo.
And it’s SHORT. Probably less than 40,000 words. And short “chapters” So great for “reluctant”.
An all around win.
taylorpg's review against another edition
4.0
The best way to describe “The Lesser Blessed” is that it’s basically a Native American version of “The Catcher in the Rye” except ten times better, and “The Catcher in the Rye” is my favorite book. I say this because The Lesser Blessed is an amazing telling of Native youth, and is understandable but not truly relatable unless you are a Native youth.. This book follows our protagonist Larry and his friend Johnny through a couple months worth of high school. The way this book is written is absolutely amazing, it's graphic, but not so graphic that you need to stop reading to recover from what you just read. I couldn't put the book down, the book is really easy to read language wise so you aren't confused at any part of the story. Even when Larry has flashbacks (which tend to be confusing to read in other books) it is super easy to read! While the author talks about the major traumatic element in the book he does an amazing job about giving you bits and pieces without telling you about the entire thing. This gives you a chance to make inferences about what happened. On to of the graphic trauma the book has a lot of comical relief, so much so that it makes the trauma not feel like the main topic of the book, which it’s not. The focus is more on Larry's life now in the present and how he grows and learns to let go of his past. This book is very much so a coming of age novel and if I do say so myself one of the best coming of age novels that I have ever read. I've never thought to read a book by a Native author about Native people, It has just never been very relevant to me but reading this book is one of the best decisions I have ever made. It is also always absolutely amazing to learn about another culture.