Angel Angel

Angel Angel is the 1995 debut novel by American writer April Stevens. The story, set in Connecticut, centers upon a dysfunctional suburban family whose malaise is challenged by the introduction of the older son's live-in girlfriend. The novel, published by Viking Press, was well received.

Plot summary

The Irises, a typical suburban family in Connecticut, are thrown into disarray upon the discovery of the patriarch's extra-marital affair. With his absence in the marital home, his wife, Augusta, struggles to understand or come to terms with the betrayal and takes to her bed for weeks. Her two sons, Matthew and Henry, face their own demons and are little help to their mother. However the introduction of Henry's sassy live-in girlfriend forces the family out of their emotional downward spiral.

Reception

Gary Krist, writing in the New York Times, noted that Stevens "is a wonderfully fluent storyteller with a shrewd eye for the offbeat".TIME described the book as "intelligent and moving", continuing that Stevens conveys the protagonist's "knowing honesty reminiscent of Edna O'Brien".Publishers Weekly described it as an "auspicious debut", continuing that Stevens' "touch is assured (and) her ear for vernacular dialogue marvelously sharp". The writer Stewart O'Nan also cited Angel Angel in a list of his favorite "overlooked" books.