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Tis Unabridged : A Memoir

Tis Unabridged : A Memoir

List Price: $49.95
Your Price: $49.95
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Wanting More
Review: Frank McCourt's sequel to Angela's Ashes lives up to the high expectations I brought to it after reading his first book. McCourt's rich and colorful stories about his life, presented in descriptive, simple, and direct language are always interesting and certainly eye opening to anyone fortunate enough not to grow up in the slums of New York and Limmerick. This story, which spans from the late 19040's until the mid-1980's, provides an excellent portarait of the cultural changes that took place in New York city during the time and the experience of a young immigrant's growth during this era. It isn't just a history though, it is a beautifully written and fascinating study of one man's life--his troubles and triumphs--that will absorb any reader. I cannot recommend it highly enough to anyone who wants to read a good book and is not afraid to get caught up in someone else's life.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Is it worth the read? -- 'Tis
Review: Once again, Frank McCourt dazzles us with his dark humor and his unique view of the world. 'Tis picks up where Angela's Ashes leaves off, and we find the young McCourt (at 19 years of age) returning to his birthplace in America, desperately hoping to find his place in the world and searching for some sort of opportunity that will afford him a more meaningful life.
The narrative first follows Frank through a series of meaningless jobs and his stint in the Army, which provides him with some bookkeeping skills. We follow him as he fails at a relationship, and see him developing a dependency of alchohol that threatens to make him follow in the footsteps of his father. We listen to the heart-rendering accounts of his return visits to Ireland, and his efforts to bring his entire family to America.
With the help of the GI bill, Frank manages to go to college, though he never attended high school. He stumbles his way through that endeavor, learning as he goes. After college he pursues his lifelong goal of teaching, and we watch as his dreams finally begin to acheive fruition.
'Tis has somewhat of a lighter tone to it than it's prequel, Angela's Ashes, mainly because his life is a little better than it had been in Ireland. He seems less resigned to his living condition, however, and the resultant inner-conflict and sense of needing to find a place in the world are the underlying tones of this book.
Frank McCourt has an uncanny knack for making us laugh, making us cry. In 'Tis, he does both, and does it like no one else can.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The Great Memoirist takes on His life in America
Review: Angela's Ashes ends with Frank McCourt's arrival in the United States; 'Tis picks up with his new life in New York City and carries us through it with humor, sadness, and a wonderful witty wisdom between each line. McCourt is a delight and this is the best addition to my library of memoirs since Angela's Ashes. Highly Recommended.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: A Must read if you've read Angela's Ashes
Review: I loved the how truthful he is...and it kept me reading and very interested. I recomend this and Angela's Ahes to anyone.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Only a Teacher
Review: Frank McCourt's book "'Tis" is a masterpiece. Sometimes it makes one want to cry, and other times, the laughter just has to come out. Anyone who teaches high school English should make this a must to read. McCourt depicts the sterility of much of what passes for education in our schools. His story also reveals the
disdain that many people in our society have for the teaching profession. Frank McCourt doesn't mince any words....he tells it like it is in the schools, the bars, NY City, and life!

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Lifsreynsla
Review: This book was quite an experience. I loved it and I hated it. I adore the wit, humour and insight of this man, Mr. McCourt, and I would like to meet him. I recommend this book to everyone!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Trust this reviewer, if no other.
Review: Regardless of how some may compare this to McCourt's previous memoir - they are one and the same. Same character, same story, same sadness, same style. The only "newbie" is the setting - America. And it is quite possible to suffer similar injustice in the "land of the free" as the oppressed Ireland. ''tis' is merely a continuation of 'Angela's Ashes', and reading the two together would be as fluid as water. I truly respect Mr. McCourt, as though I cannot say anything with certainty on the veracity of any that he has written (though I would never bet against it), he never presumes to make himself into the "good guy". He is a flawed individual as all other characters clearly are, as is demonstrated by his disinterest and basically "to hell with them" attitude during his tenure as an english teacher. Which he still is today, by the way. A marvellous piece of literature - it should be required reading for modern history classes around the world.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Tis : A Memoir - Storytelling at its best
Review: I have just finished the audio version of this book and have truly enjoyed it. It is like listening to a family member recant the old stories of his youth. I am amazed at the detail of his memories and the honesty of the story. Most people would like to make themselves sound more heroic in front of others. I found his honesty refreshing.

I would recommend this book to anyone who used to sit on their grandfather/mother's knee and listen to tales of their childhood. The characters come alive as he describes them and tells about the conversations he had with them.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: 'Tis
Review: I liked this better than Angela's Ashes. It was richer to some extent. I only wish he had added more to the ending about his start at being an author. It's a great book.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: a great memoir!
Review: I once overheard a woman tell her friend in a bookstore "I didn't like the plot of Tis as much as I liked the one in Angela's Ashes." It's an AUTOBIOGRAPHY, there is no plot, and who are you to judge someone's life?

That said, Tis is a great memoir. McCourt has left Ireland to return to his birthplace of New York City, where he humorously tells us about all his menial jobs before earning teaching credentials and becoming a public high school teacher. He meets Alberta "Mike" Small, his first wife. His brothers Malachy and Alfie, and eventually his mother Angela, immigrate back to NYC as well.

McCourt has an excellent writing style where the sentences flow and sound like someone is lecturing him, no matter what his stage of life! He describes certain people he meets throughout the years and the impact they had on his life (they must have, to garner mention -- after all, you can meet thousands of people living in NYC for 20 years.)

Read this book and remember that McCourt is sharing his life with you, not making up some plot to entertain, and you will enjoy the book far more for it.


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