Angel Angel

by April Stevens

Telling her husband to leave and then falling into a depression, Augusta finds herself surrounded by her loud and complicated family members, including her two radically different sons and her eccentric friend. A first novel. 20,000 first printing. Tour.

Genres: Fiction

Hardcover

First published February 1, 1995

Reviews

[Greg · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book 23 years ago, at a time when I was around the same age as Henry, Bette, and Matthew. At the time, the story touched me deeply in a way that few novel had at that point in my life. It was probably the novel with the most sorrow and tenderness that I had read, and it greatly out stepped my own experiences. I enjoyed it because it gave a preview of the range of emotions and different connections life might on day offer me. Now, 23 years later I come back to the book at a time when I am closer to Augusta in age, and I love this book still. Having now experienced many of the emotions and lived different variations of these events, the book has such a depth of personal meaning for me. It is one of my favorite experiences as a reader.

[Erica · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm divorced, my ex-husband has re-married, I have 2 teenage children who I was very devoted to when they were younger, I am middle-class, white, and have many artists in the family, and despite all of these similarities with the main character, I could not relate to her at all.

The book, although it appears to be written in the first-person voice of the mother, and switches to second-person for the two sons and the son's girlfriend, is actually more tuned in to the perspective of the younger son, age 18, who inexplicably has just failed to graduate when his father abandons the family.

The mother's bedridden state of depression is not unusual, but the author gives us absolutely nothing to deepen our empathy or understanding of her state of mind, not even as she gradually is lifted out of it.

Her two sons' experience of her and their own depression has a little more dimension, and therefore is a bit more engaging. The ubiquitous cigarette smoking bothers me, but I suppose it's realistic. An entire month is spent with the main character drunk even though he loves his girlfriend, he's just discovered a creative side to himself, and he has a job he likes, which doesn't make sense to me and therefore seems like a writing device or construct and not a true story.

I found the entire work to be frustrating, depressing, and murky. The older brother's dysfunction is never explained, explored, or addressed by the author or any characters - anyone in the family, and even though it's bad enough that he has sex with the younger brother's girlfriend while he's drunk & ignoring her, as the book ends, readers must see that the worst is yet to come for the entire family. The older brother still sees her as the only female in the entire universe, and the younger brother only appreciates her because she understands him so well, and takes care of him so well, and yet, she is pregnant and the two are about to become uncle and father. What a disaster that will be! Jeeeeez.

Imagining the future of this family made me want to get into my pajamas, get into bed, ignore my laundry for a month, and stop eating. Except that this novel clearly demonstrated that no insight will be gained by that, no personal growth will happen, and I'd be very likely to grow addicted to cigarettes.

[Kyra · Rating 4 out of 5]

How can anything ever be okay again?

I had to come back and give it a four. I appreciate the book for what it is. How often do we really seek and obtain closure?

[Carrie Jaffe-Pickett · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyed this overall, a very focused book on family dysfunction. While gripping and even painful at times, I had two main concerns. One was while I appreciated the mother’s pain at her husband’s departure, I didn’t have that much of an investment in her nor did I feel that I knew her, so I didn’t care as much as I should have that she was isolated and bedridden. Part of me was thinking: “Move On. Get a Life, already!” Second concern was Bette, Henry’s girlfriend. While I appreciated her simplicity and apparent quick ability to “get” people, I don’t think her character was interesting or dynamic enough to transform the Iris family in the way she supposedly did. The love triangle with Bette and Mathew’s fling made her less sympathetic. In the end, I wish I’d been more enthusiastic to root for this family wholeheartedly.

[Brandon Bourgeois · Rating 5 out of 5]

An interesting look at the different manifestations of grief and depression and how they can ensnare and infect other people. While it deals with deep depression, it never feels irredeemably dark. The days seem endless, but there’s never a sense that they are limited. There is a future for each of these characters, it is just a matter of knowing how to face it.

[Dulcey Heller · Rating 4 out of 5]

4+

[Nick · Rating 3 out of 5]

love the way that april stevens can describe things so intimately & plainly…her use of metaphors makes me happy <3

[Jules · Rating 5 out of 5]

A hidden gem.

[Bo Nobo Nobo · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book published in 1995 only recently came to my attention since it also recently caught Hollywood's interest and is being made into a movie. It was an interesting read from beginning to end. Lot's of different and interesting characters and many funny moments lead me to finish this book quite quickly. Each time I picked up the book I knew I was going to be flipping through at least 3 chapters. Great read and hopefully Hollywood does it justice.

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read it when I was in the third grade. I didn't know what it was about, but after the first page, I was literally hooked. I loved the way she described things, the way she made you feel like you were in the mist of it all. It's one of my favorite books and I could always choose this book to pick and read, and always feel like I am reading it for the first time. I love it, simple as that.

[joanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book fixes me

[Elizabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

A kinda of depressing book but it gets happy as it goes on.

[Jennifer Benfield · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was painful to read at times, but it is worth it.