ANGELA'S ASHES

Rating:
Summary: great story
Review: this is a great story. frank mccourt is one of the best writers for the new century. his words and the way he captured the feelings and emotions of the time was wonderful. this story is a great inspiration and wonderful story for anyone.

Rating:
Summary: Angela's Ashes
Review: Don't buy this audio book for your auto, unless you have plenty of gasoline and a lunch. My advice is that you turn off your cell phone and do not attempt to make any appointments or speak to anyone for the next 15 hours. Once you begin to hear this sorryful tale, you will never be the same. You may never stop driving for 15 hours. This book is a hazard to your well being and may damage your ability to be a good Irish father. If you are a little bit Irish, this will turn you sideways. Now, pardon me, I must have a stout and then go to confession. God bless you, Father.

Rating:
Summary: The best !
Review: This is one of the best book I have ever read ! Once you open it you can not put it down. I admire Frank for what he went through, the permanent fight he had to go through during his childhood, and for what he became. The most amazing thing is that he had a dream from his youngest age and always fought in order to achieve that one. This book also shows that determination and dreams enable you to reach your goals in life even if you have to fight harder and harder every day. I'd lived in Dublin for a few years and I believe from what I read about this country that Frank was not exaggerating at all regarding the poverty of this country at the beginning of last century. I have read this book in both English and French and could easily go throught it again and again. Thank you very much Mr Mac Court for writing that book and giving us hope and morality from your own experience of life.

Rating:
Summary: Brilliantly written
Review: Alternately heartbreaking and hilarious, this lyrical memoir is a joy to read. McCourt's honesty about his family, his childhood experiences, and his own shortcomings is refreshing. He relates the pain of his poverty without self-pity, and the religious upbringing with a mixture of humor and some anger. I am an avid reader, and this is one of the best books I have read in a long time.

Rating:
Summary: Poignant, Amusing - but Dubious Veracity - NOT Joyce!
Review: McCourt's book is amusing for his own experience, but it does not transfer to the overall Irish or Irish American immigrant experience. The recounting of his early childhood seems to rife with details of events he was not present at to be factual. The man is a great storyteller, but he should have written a novel based on his experiences. He doesn't hold a candle to Roddy Doyle, and should not even be mentioned in the same universe as James Joyce.

Rating:
Summary: A lifetime of memories and hardship
Review: I was asked to read this book in my college english class and I am glad I did. It was a wonderful book full of colorful characters such as Mrs. Leibowitz, Paddy Clohessy, and many others. This book truly made me understand how hard life was for those in Limerick and the rest of Ireland. If you're looking for a great book full of emotion, humor, and heart, this is the one to read.

Rating:
Summary: fantastic !
Review: i cried and cried again, what a terrific book, truelly well written and breath taking all the way! buy it, enjoy it!

Rating:
Summary: A version of "Roots" for the Irish
Review: All of a sudden the actions of many of my relatives seemed part of a larger pattern. My God! Was it because we have Irish roots & souls? I did NOT find this book to be "self-pity tripe" as others have described it. I thought the author spoke in a unique running narrative, with a matter-of-fact rather than "woe is me" tone. Hell, I challenge anyone describing this as their history to make it sound upbeat. The truth was a story in itself and it has occured many times over throughout our human history. That he survived in an indifferent world was uplifting. I have many connections to this. I come from a long line of passionate, creative people who love and live hard. Many of them have made the mistakes of McCourt's father and mother. A handful have gone to succeed like the author and his siblings. But the very best was Frank McCourts opening. The first few paragraphs of the book set the stage nicely. In short, he says a happy childhood may not have the worth of a difficult one. Hard beginnings have created some of the best characters out there. I'm sure I would be a very different person myself if I came from "soft" beginnings. But I did not. I'm the strong and passionate person I am because I did not, and that is the way of the world. It is rewarding to read a book where my temperment and instictive nature makes sense.

Rating:
Summary: I couldn't put it down!
Review: The genius of Frank McCourt's memoir is its tendency to bring the reader into reality. The reality of the world touched me and made me remember that there are people out there who have much less than I do, and they are still happy. Throughout the novel, Frank was thankful for what he had and said that there were others who had less than he. The McCourt family is plagued with poverty and disease, and I can't think of anyone who had less than they did. But, the true humanity of Frank reached out to some who had less than he, and on numerous occasions, the McCourt family gave to those who had less than themselves. Frank was also guilty of stealing, and although he knew it was wrong, somehow he is justified because his family had been through so much. Stealing food and money sometimes was all that could keep them alive. "Angela's Ashes" allowed me to remember that there are people out there who are suffering. A truly fascinating book that will make any reader thankful for what they have.

Rating:
Summary: An Amazing Read!
Review: I cannot even begin to convey the emotion that this book aroused in me. Frank McCourt is a phenomenal writer who really brings his readers into his world, as awful as it may be, and doesn't let them out. There hasn't been a book in my life that was a captivating to me as Angela's Ashes. I didn't want the story to come to an end! Currently I am reading 'Tis, because McCourt has left me wanting so much more!