Angel Wing Splash Pattern 1st Ed

by Richard Van Camp

Book by Van Camp, Richard

Genres: Short Stories, Canada, Indigenous, Fiction

110 pages, Paperback

First published July 13, 2002

About the author

A Dogrib (Tlicho) Dene from Fort Smith, NWT, Richard Van Camp is an internationally renowned storyteller and best-selling author. He is the author of the novel, The Lesser Blessed, a collection of short stories, Angel Wing Splash Pattern, and two children’s books with Cree artist, George Littlechild. His new baby book: Welcome Song for Baby: A Lullaby for Newborns is the official selection of the Books for BC Babies program and is being given to every newborn baby in British Columbia in 2008. His new novel, Blessing Wendy, will be released in the fall of 2009 through Orca Book Publishers. Richard was awarded Storyteller of the Year for both Canada and the US by the Wordcraft Circle of Native Writers and Storytellers. You can visit Richard at his website: www.richardvancamp.org.

Reviews

[Linnea · Rating 5 out of 5]

You know when you come across those books that make you go, "Uhnh." A terse punch in the gut that reminds you of something another you cannot seem to grasp. The pain lingers there for a couple of days, or at least a few hours, until it crystallizes into something harder. A fossil you might discover years from now when you're sorting through old receipts and are reminded of how you used to buy food to feed two, and you start to think - "God, I'm glad I read [such-and-such-a-book:]" so that I know there's someone else out there who's felt this stone clinkering around inside too.

Angel Wing Splash Pattern by Richard Van Camp is one of those books.

[Caleb · Rating 5 out of 5]

The last book to move me to tears was Bernard McLaverty's Cal. From beginning to end, this book is soul. It's an incredible patchwork of linked stories of First Nations life in Northwest Canada. Think Denis Johnson with more soul. High praise I know but it's deserving of that. It's infinitely sensitive and compassionate in dealing with its material. This is my favorite book ever right now.

[Christine · Rating 3 out of 5]

A collection of short stories by author and creative writing professor Richard Van Camp, of Dogrib heritage, Angel Wing Splash Pattern whips you through the strange, dark, and sometimes haunting experiences of First Nations individuals living in Canada's north. Typically dark, the stories range from regular narrative to more experimental imagery. They are often sexual and mention drug use and bullying. Personally, these stories made me think of Alice Munro; if she had read a ton of James Joyce or Thomas Pynchon right before starting her new collection. My favourite story of the collection was the first in the book, Mermaids. Young Dogrib man Torchy is barely holding on to his hope and sanity after his Hail Mary scheme backfires. Now he's coming apart at the seams alone in the dark waiting for the last bus out of town when he meets a young girl crying at the bus stop. It's just a little interaction in a tiny story, but Van Camp imbues it with meaning and promise, and suggests that no matter how dark our pasts are, if we work together we can all rise together. If you are looking to include more Canadian or First Nations content in your to-be-read pile, and especially if you want stories that aren't written like your typical short tale, snag yourself a copy of Angel Wing Splash Pattern and let Van Camp's impressionistic writing pull you in.

[Lucile Barker · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of short stories, a follow up to his novel, The Lesser Blessed, which I found very disturbing. Larry Sole does show up in one of the stories. These stories are less upsetting, but still have a depth that makes them almost too real. Some are set in the traditional Dogrib territory, but some take place in the south. All the narrators seem to be searching and there is a sense of loss around many of them. Whether his characters are driving through endless miles of white, try to save a Christmas Parade, working their way through the steps of AA, getting tossed out of a bar in Yellowknife. or discussing “Dances with Wolves,” they get to you. Some of these stories are available in audio on the net, read by Ben Cardinal.

[Lynn Bornath · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought all of the stories were remarkable. Highly recommended. Read the full review.

[Jeffrey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just wow!

[Jaime M · Rating 5 out of 5]

"I love how clouds here fold themselves and burn for sunsets" Mermaids

[Dezirah Remington · Rating 4 out of 5]

Last month we read van Camp’s first novel The Lesser Blessed, this month we moved to his short story collection.

Van Camp has a unique ability to put the reader into some really complex emotional spaces, especially into spaces that are linked to prior trauma. The experience, while not pleasant, is eye opening. These are for the most part very short stories, which can make it hard for an author to create depth and character, however, Van Camp does so with ease, mostly through a deep understanding of the communities he writes about and through lots of well constructed and realistic, including individualized speech patterns.

While not a fully linked collection, the stories are linked by place and affiliation (connected to Dogrib), and sometimes by characters. The collection ends with a story connecting back to the Lesser Blessed, where we find the characters from the book, but in a different timeline. This is the only story that lives in the mind of a teen boy, and the internalized hyper sexualization and misogyny often found in teen boy voices is distracting. Is this combination of posturing and sexualizing every situation a “teen boy” thing or is it a response to real individual and cultural trauma?

[Diana Gaviria · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the exciting immediacy of these stories, each one reads like a sharp intake of breath that burns in the throat.

These characters have nothing left to lose and you feel that, their frustration, desperation and expectation of justice.

As a fan of The Lesser Blessed and Richard Van Camp's short story collections, especially Night Moves and The Moon of Letting Go, I enjoyed seeing the first appearances of characters like Torchy, Sfen, Snowbird as well as the hilarious and touching reappearance of Larry Sole.

My favourite stories from this collection have to be: "Mermaids", "Let's Beat the Shit Out of Herman Rosko", "The Night Charles Bukowski Died" and "How I Saved Christmas".

If you can, read the 20th Anniversary edition of Angel Wing Splash Pattern, it has the gorgeously illustrated version of Mermaids in it as well as a brilliant afterword by the author in which he offers up the inspiration behind each of his beautiful stories.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mermaids was the standout story to me, a few other gems, and a bunch of moments that made me go “damn.” Had no idea what to expect from this book, it felt like an honest portrayal of a handful of real lives in NWT. Glad I read it.

[Jarin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brilliant poignant writing. Probably more like 4.5 stars, this is an excellent excellent read.
Short stories are not usually my thing which is why I didn’t love love it but that’s more personal preference over any criticism of the book.

[Joan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Im not t much of a short story reader but these were just so well done they were impossible not to enjoy.