Rating: Summary: Blah Blah Blah Review: I loved Angela's Ashes and looked forward to reading this book, but found it very disappointing. There are definately some interesting and poignant moments, but more often it is a self-indulgent ramble about a seemingly ordinary life in America. It was a challange to finish the book and my time could have been better spent writing my own memoirs since they are way more compelling than Franks's!
Rating: Summary: as good as Angela's Ashes Review: I liked this book a lot. Mr. McCourt writes with the same care and humor that are so evident in Angela's Ashes. Some parts are heartbreaking, like the episode about the family that was torn apart by World War II. Unfortunately, McCourt comes across as boorish in his treatment of his first marriage, but undoubtedly it is a difficult thing to write objectively and kindly about one's ex-spouse. Overall, the book is definitely worth reading and lets you know what happens to McCourt and the rest of his family after the time period covered by Angela's Ashes.
Rating: Summary: A Facinating Contemporary Autobiography Review: After reading "Angela's Ashes" I asked my public library to purchase this book. I find this book much more upbeat, very human in explaining his lack of confidence. Because of how he portrayed his own character I believe a lot of us connect to how he felt and what he went through. Frank McCourt's words brought to the page what a lot of people feel one way or another, one day or another in each of our own lives.
Rating: Summary: 'Tis his dream. Review: I went straight from reading Angela's Ashes to 'Tis with great enthusiasm, knowing that Frank McCourt's life had to turn out better then what he was subjected to in Limerick as a boy. Little did I know. I found this book somewhat lesser of the two, striving to read on in some parts, but feel that it had all the elements and charm of the man himself. With his cultured humor and simplistic expression, I hope to read something from Mr. McCourt that is non-autobiographical in the future. I also hope his book covers are framed and hanging in the Lion's Head.
Rating: Summary: PICKS UP WHERE ANGELA'S ASHES LEFT OFF Review: I couldn't wait for this long awaited sequel of Angela's Ashes to finally be published and I certainly wasn't disappointed. OK, it's no Angela's Ashes but it's still a great read. Part of the beauty of Angela's Ashes was the fact that it was so different....unlike anything I had ever read before. McCourt's humor in describing an incredibly stressful childhood in dire conditions was something I'll never forget. By the time we get to 'Tis, he is 19 and arriving in America to find the American dream. His sincerity and humor still shine through in this sequel. If you loved Angela's Ashes, you'd be hard-pressed not to like this one.
Rating: Summary: 'Tis Review: I felt that Frank McCourt had written a truly insightful account of his early life in Angela's Ashes. However, as an educator myself, I throroughly enjoyed 'Tis. McCourt portrays himself in a clearly honest and not always flattering manner as he pursues the American dream. Frank resents his father's drinking and desertion of his family. However, he clings somewhat to the same course. They share the love of the drink and a self-centered view of the world. This is, in many respects a pitiful account of a man searching for answers in his life, but insights are often laced with profound humor.
Rating: Summary: Not a patch on Angela's Ashes Review: Let's face it- had it not been for the success of Angela's Ashes, McCourt would never been able to get this rambling and only occasionally interesting memoir published. Like other readers I found this self-indulgent and repetetive. By the end of it I liked McCourt (as a person and as a writer) far less than after reading Angela's Ashes. I wish I hadn't spoiled the magic by reading this volume.
Rating: Summary: Tis a bit choppy Review: Angela's Ashes is a hard book to follow and Frank stumbled a bit with 'TIS. He is a fine storyteller and I admire his ability to leap from one tale to another all in the confines of one chapter. But I found little continuity, and had some difficulty making the jumps with Frank. He certainly has the ability to raise my ire with his incipient alcholism and spotty treatment of "Mam". All in all, I found the book entertaining, but not among my favorites.
Rating: Summary: A Smooth Stone Review: Frank McCourt reaffirms the pervasive goodness and comedy life serves up, on the cracked ceramic dish of commonplace hardship. No trace of resentment or meanness. McCourt is like a stone that has stood in the torrent of the cold, fast river of life, without being swayed or pushed aside-only worn of sharp edges and sculpted into a refined work. McCourt has more than one story left to tell, I would venture. Scanning the horizon filled with folks striving daily to conceal their experience of life (translate: aging), it is especially delightful and encouraging to encounter an individual who has not just grown older, but has unpretentiously and in actual fact, gracefully matured. I look forward to more of McCourt's stories, and hearing the sound of his fine Irish voice in my mind's ear. ######
Rating: Summary: LOVED IT! Review: I kept hearing that this book was not as good as Angela's ashes I bought it anyway and was pleasently surprised. It was fun, sad and overall a beautiful story. Congratulations!
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