The BOOK/MOVIE Club discussion

Discuss your thoughts about "Angela's Ashes" with us here!

Podcast Episode:
https://soundcloud.com/user-570618038...

I'm only a few pages into the book but I'm loving it so far. If I wasn't American I would want to be Irish so this book stood out to me right away.

Glad you're enjoying it! The author has a really strong style of writing, and the way he writes dialogue without any quotation marks is pretty unique. I also connected with it very strongly in just in the first few pages.

Just beginning it too here

I stayed up so late reading but I am really enjoying his writing style!

50 pages into the book and I've already laughed and cried. I can hardly put it down!

Same here, its so funny but also very sad.

Everything seems so ordinary when you're a kid. As a reader you know that they're living in dire circumstances, but to young Frank McCourt it's just regular life. McCourt just captures a child's wonder and innocence of the world so well. There are so many times where I just want to pick little McCourt up, pat him on the head and say-, "It'll be okay, Little Dude! Trust me, you're going to be an awesome writer when you're older!"

So glad you're both enjoying it!

Today was the last day for Angela's Ashes! We posted our full review, linked above... I gave it 9 out of 10! It's a dark yet hopeful story with unconventional syntax and a surprisingly great sense of humor.

What did you think of the book? Let us know!

**SPOILERS**
I gave Angela's Ashe's a 9.5/10!

I listed my top (3) reasons I gave it such a high score!

P.S. We also go over these in more detail on our podcast ;D

1. Character Descriptions: One of the best parts about McCourt's memoir is how vibrant each character is. Angela's strength as a mother is especially notable, as Malachy Sr. drinks the dole money, as her children pass away from malnourishment, as she begs on the streets for food- she is resilient. Even lesser characters have complex personalities: the shopkeeper, the school teachers, the neighbors. By the end, I felt as if I walked the streets of Limerick with Frank himself.

2. Portrayal of Humanity in Dire Circumstances: Time and time again, humans are able to overcome extreme situations. The escapism mechanisms made McCourt's "epic of woe" relatable on a human level. Every person deals with negative circumstances in a different way whether it is religion, reading, drugs, alcohol, art, the cinema, etc. Humans are flawed and McCourt's portrayal of humanity is beautifully complex and cast in an intimate light.

3. Writing Style: I absolutely LOVED the writing style. I love how Frank doesn't use quotations- making the book seem like a flowing art piece rather than a Point A to B novel. I love the Irish accents and how each character has their speaking quirks. Mostly, I love that this book is written from a child's perspective. It captures youth so well that it had me thinking about my childhood. When did I learn about death? When did I begin questioning what others told me?

Mr. McCourt's memoir is not just the story of his family's struggles, but the story of his own sentimental education: his discovery of poetry and girls, and his efforts to come to terms with God and death and faith.

What were your favorite parts? Do you agree/disagree with my comments?

Great book and a great memoir with loads of style a lot of fun to read. Its child like way of telling the story reminded me of "Room" by Emma O'Donoghue as it was all told in the way of an innocent child's perspective of the world.

The natural way he told these sad but very funny stories, like someone just chatting to you over a cup of coffee, is very like one of my favorite books "Post Office" by Charles Bukowski one of the funniest sad books you could ever read and its also autobiographical.

An if you like the irishness of the book there is another great irish writer that captures the irish spirit well, Roddy Doyle. "Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha" won the Booker Prize 1993. The story is about a 10-year-old boy living in Barrytown, North Dublin, and the events that happen within his age group, school and home in around 1968.

Dylan wrote: "Great book and a great memoir with loads of style a lot of fun to read. Its child like way of telling the story reminded me of "Room" by Emma O'Donoghue as it was all told in the way of an innocent..."

Glad you enjoyed it as much as we did Dylan! I was very interested to see what your opinion would be. We may have to read the sequel, "Tis," about McCourt's adult years in New York, at some point down the line :) I haven't read "Room" yet, but I saw the movie adaptation and I was blown away.

Thank you for all the great book recommendations, by the way, we definitely do appreciate them. I will be checking these out soon!

no problem yes I'll try grab tis soon. I listened and liked your podcast. tis is pronounced more like tiz, kind of like a quick way of say it is. is your tea good? tis indeed