Angela's Ashes：A Memoir

“WhenIlookbackonmychildhoodIwonderhowImanagedtosurviveatall.Itwas,ofcourse,amiserablechildhood:thehappychildhoodishardlyworthyourwhile.WorsethantheordinarymiserablechildhoodisthemiserableIrishchildhood,andworseyetisthemiserableIrishCatholicchildhood.”SobeginstheluminousmemoirofFrankMcCourt,borninDepression-eraBrooklyntorecentIrishimmigrantsandraisedintheslumsofLimerick,Ireland.Frank’smother,Angela,hasnomoneytofeedthechildrensinceFrank’sfather,Malachy,rarelyworks,andwhenhedoeshedrinkshiswages.YetMalachy—exasperating,irresponsible,andbeguiling—doesnurtureinFrankanappetitefortheonethinghecanprovide:astory.Franklivesforhisfather’stalesofCuchulain,whosavedIreland,andoftheAngelontheSeventhStep,whobringshismotherbabies.PerhapsitisstorythataccountsforFrank’ssurvival.Wearingragsfordiapers,beggingapig’sheadforChristmasdinnerandgatheringcoalfromtheroadsidetolightafire,Frankendurespoverty,near-starvationandthecasualcrueltyofrelativesandneighbors—yetlivestotellhistalewitheloquence,exuberance,andremarkableforgiveness.Angela’sAshes,imbuedoneverypagewithFrankMcCourt’sastoundinghumorandcompassion,isagloriousbookthatbearsallthemarksofaclassic.