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Angela's Ashes: A Memoir Audiobook
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(4.00) - 210,329 listener ratings
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Synopsis
Angela's Ashes is a memoir written by Frank McCourt. The author also narrates this unabridged audio version. Pulitzer Prize winner for Autobiography, Angela's Ashes tells a saga spanning an ocean. Though some think of this book as sorrowful, many who have heard McCourt tell his story can hear the joy he felt over the smallest victory of finding a meal and can understand the sense of humor that he developed in order to bear these blows of life. This is thought of as a classic in memoir literature, and was adapted for a film. Living in poverty as a child, McCourt reveals those days into his adult years in the cities of Limerick, Ireland and Brooklyn, New York. He struggled with his father's alcoholism and with his mother's rescuing nature, which preserved their family unit for a time.
He was born in the thirties in New York to Irish immigrants, and later returned with them to the desolate slumhouses of Limerick, Ireland. The name Angela is his mother's, and she scrounged with what little money she had left over from his father's alcohol binges. His dad didn't work much in the first place. Though sometimes Frank had to wear soles on his shoe from rubber of a tire, and though sometimes he had to beg for pork head for holiday meals, and though he had to look for his dad in pubs, he is still able to tell us these stories with hope, grace, and humanity.
Frank McCourt was a teacher for years, and originally got himself into college without a high school degree by talking his way into New York University and promising to maintain an average grade of a B+. He died from cancer in 2009.
"This book is among my favorites and a definite must-read. I could see myself re-reading it several times. It is written from the perspective of a small child but is in no way simplistic--descriptions are wonderfully nuanced and enlightening, even as the character speaks in his childlike voice. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to gain insight into what poverty is truly like, as what you take away from it rings true in all countries and epochs."
— Stephanielle (5 out of 5 stars)
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“A splendid memoir, both funny and forgiving.”
— People -
“It is only the best storyteller who can so beguile his readers that he leaves them wanting more when he’s done. With Angela’s Ashes, McCourt proves himself one of the very best.”
— Newsweek -
“The reader of this stunning memoir can only hope that Mr. McCourt will set down the story of his subsequent adventures in America in another book. Angela’s Ashes is so good it deserves a sequel.”
— New York Times -
“A spellbinding memoir of childhood that swerves flawlessly between aching sadness and desperate humor...A work of lasting beauty.”
— Philadelphia Inquirer
Awards
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Pulitzer Prize winner
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A #1 New York Times bestseller
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A USA Today bestseller
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1996 National Book Critics Circle Award Winner for Biography/Autobiography
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Winner of the 1996 Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Biography
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An American Bookseller Association Book of the Year in 1997
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Winner of an AudioFile Earphones Award
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A New York Times Best Book for Nonfiction in 1996
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An ALA Notable Book Nonfiction Finalist
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Nominated for the Barnes & Noble Discover Award
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Oprah Pick for Best Memoirs of a Generation
Angela's Ashes Listener Reviews
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4/9/2023
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" I am disappointed with the narration. I thought letting my students listen to the book in an Irish accent would give better context, but it lacks expression. "
— KLDNKIDS, 9/8/2021 -
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Edward Aragon, 7/24/2019
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" This is my all time favorite book. It made me laugh and cry and parts of it reminded me so much of my own family. The humor in it is not for everyone but, in my opinion, the humor (though mostly a depressing humor) was the best part of the book. Loved it. "
— Pepper, 2/18/2014 -
" Amazing book..I love the way he wrote it from a boys point of view ..so descriptive and clever "
— Janet, 1/28/2014 -
" read again. absolutly beautiful and heartbreaking. "
— Julie, 1/26/2014 -
" A very quick read as well as amazing. Held my interest from front to back. A very detailed image of life growing up in Ireland/America with a family controlled by the "consumption" and the everyday life of it. "
— Cory, 1/19/2014 -
" "Loved both audio and read, sad, poignant, humorous, story thru boy's eyes, poverty in Ireland, '40s etc., audio great- read by author" "
— Becca, 1/17/2014 -
" If Frank McCourt can survive the crushing poverty and near death experiences of his childhood, this is a testament to anyone in dire circumstances that there is hope. "
— Elise, 1/17/2014 -
" A superb book. I enjoyed it so much I also borrowed for the library the book on tape, read by Frankie McCourt and accompanied by wonderful Irish music. Loved THAT even more! "
— Joyce, 12/27/2013 -
" Great story of enduring and overcoming poverty. "
— Kari, 11/21/2013
About Frank McCourt
Frank McCourt (1930–2009) was born in Brooklyn, New York, grew up in Limerick, Ireland, and returned to America in 1949. He taught in New York City high schools for thirty years. His first book, Angela’s Ashes, won the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Critics Circle Award, and the Los Angeles Times Book Award. He won the prestigious Ellis Island Family Heritage Award and the John Dewey Award for Excellence in Education in 2006.