“Sun Angel” by Chris Fisher is a collection of short stories, each one portraying a different character that grew up in the small town of Dolguard. Each story is written from someone else’s point of view, therefore giving us a closer look into the town. We get to see the full picture, and see how the characters shape the way we view life in a small town.
The characters in these short stories were all very unique. They ranged from children, young kids just out of college, drunks, and farmers trying to make ends meet. It was interesting to see how each character was tied to the town. Even after moving away to a large city, Muriel, always thought of Dolguard as her true home. When Greg, a young college student, wants to run for mayor, an old farmer named Dick sums up the ways of the town by saying, “It’s town stuff. It’s working together stuff. It’s Dolguard, and now some young bucks want to tear it apart.”. As i read that it occurred to me that this might also be how some people in Dalmeny feel when they see us young kids trying to organize dances, have parties, or start up a recreation center. It helped me to understand a little where they were coming from.
Some characters in these stories were rather shady. In one story there was an Uncle Matt, who seemed rather nice in the beginning. But as the story went on it was evident that he was raping his niece. In the end, she ends up seeking revenge and killing him. As you can see, this small town does have some dark secrets.
The Essay on Story of Young Goodman Brown
Goodman Brown stood there bewildered, as to what these holy men were doing in between the forest, where there was no church or place of worship. He began thinking of Faith, his wife, as deacon Gookin mentioned about a goodly young woman who was to attend the communion. He wondered if Faith would ever do such a thing as attend a communion of the evil. As he thought, the forest broke into all sorts ...
I liked how this book was written. It may have been a collection of short stories, but since some characters were mentioned in more than one story, it linked it all together nicely. Chris Fisher does a wonderful job of showing the roots of a small town, and how the characters shape this community. Often the stories are told in first person narration, so you can see how the character feels and what they think. It takes it to a more personal level, making it easier to relate to the different characters.
The one thing that bothered me about the novel was how certain things weren’t said. For example, in the story of Uncle Matt, it wasn’t directly said that he raped his niece, or that she killed him. It told the story of her using a bat to hit the jack of the car, and then a lot of blood. From this, we assume she didn’t just injure him, but killed him. Also, in another story told of how a college student quit playing hockey, and started taking art classes instead of Psychology. His dad is mad, having his dreams smashed, since he always wanted a son in the NHL. The mom and sister know of the real reason as to why the son quit, but Chris Fisher never reveals it. I would’ve liked to have known what the true reason was, instead of left wondering.
This collection of short stories wouldn’t have much appeal to those who haven’t experience life in a small town. This is why it’s probably not all that popular. In order to enjoy the book, and relate to the characters, you need to have experienced life within a small town.
