Tis: A Memoir by Frank McCourt
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Book Reviews of Tis: A Memoir
Book Review: A sometimes whiny yet heart-breaking sequel
Summary: 5 Stars
Oh my word. I don't know what most reviewers are talking about. Tis is a true gift to readers who're interested in the author's life. Angela's Ashes had more poetry while Tis has more modern day cynicism being caged to a life imposes. In transparent words, this is the book where McCourt grows up in the USA. It's about his odd and awkward days of longing for women and wondering why he was the odd one out, about days when he wanted to be disconnected from his family and despite not being poor, the author finds himself in another predicament of missing Limerick, Ireland.
Frank McCourt is my favourite author. I don't know about writing styles because I've never read many books but Tis truly broke my heart a few times and it made me laugh out loud atleast six times. In my opinion, it is a bit criminal to say that this book is better than Angela's Ashes but I must admit I enjoyed reading this even more.
Do me a favour and ignore all the negative reviews. Arm chair critics wouldn't know better.
Book Review: The Irish.. at home in New York
Summary: 5 Stars
I'm not sure what it is, other than abject poverty, that makes the Irish migrate. But everywhere I come across them, I'm glad of it.
Frank McCourt has that uncanny knack for self-hypnosis which enables him to step back into his own personal history and write, with the hindsight of age.. of the freshness of youth.
As a young man, I worked in Oxford, at a place that was more or less a refuge for Irishmen abroad. I was taught how to milk a goat by a Kerryman... at a time when I most needed it.
All of the guide books I ever read, said avoid Limerick, and every book that Frank McCourt has ever written screams 'Go there !'.
This book takes you in the footsteps of young Frankie McCourt arriving in a foreign country, that is really his ancestral home.
It captures the uncertainty and unquenchable enthusiasm of youth.
Book Review: 'Tis
Summary: 5 Stars
A must read. It's funny, warm, serious and he's finally out of the Irish slums. I truly enjoyed it. The only thing wrong with it was I would have liked it to be twice as long; its that good a read.Book Review: Great Read!
Summary: 5 Stars
This book is a "must read" particularly if you read Angela's Ashes. It's even better than his earlier books and really gives you a great feeling as to how he put his life together.Book Review: Do I detect an Irish Brogue? ;)
Summary: 4 Stars
I listened to this book as read by the Author. I recommend that, as I read Angela's Ashes and enjoyed it a lot as well, but there is something special about the reading by the author that adds a diminsion to the work that you can't quite catch reading it.
Up front, many are uncomfortable with this work and Angela's Ashes because of the language, which is quite blue in places. I don't find it the most endearing quality myself, but as a memoir it captures the language of the army, the loading dock, the teachers lounge and the bar. Be warned up front, if you are not comfortable hearing swearing, then this is NOT the book for you.
That having been said, listening to McCourt read, I caught the poetic, lyrical, stream of consciousness attributes that I knew were present in Angela's Ashes, but hearing the cadence, the lilting roll and flow of the language; there are parts of this book that come close to poetry. It is an amazing and endearing quality that is rarely achieved in most modern literature.
McCourt has a rare transparency with his insecurity, his dysfunctional relationships, his family dynamics, his romance with his first wife and his transition to teaching and moving toward writing is very revealing and almost has a therapeutic value as you listen and can recognize the human condition in general.
My one criticism, is that, perhaps, this book stretches a little long for the material he includes. The actual narrative events can be condensed to a very short story line. It is the embellishment, the thinking out loud and the dancing around in what becomes a farily discernible pattern by the end of the book to where, it "almost" becomes a little tedious, although this is faint criticism when weighed against the overall impact of the book.
A very entertaining listen and read! It is hard to follow-up on a Pulitzer Prize. The goal is lofty and the expectations overwhelming. My opinion is this book does not surpass its progenitor, but it certainly comes close and provides more of the same type of reading and entertainment.
I look forward to reading, and hopefully hearing the next installment.