Angela’s Ashe’s is one of the best memoirs I have ever read. Frank McCourt’s memoir is heartbreaking, heartwarming, and hilarious. The first of three memoirs, Angela’s Ashes relates McCourt’s youth and adolescence in Limerick and Brooklyn; McCourt grew up in a broken home with an alcoholic father and a proverbial wolf at the door; death, alcoholism, faith, and hunger are recurring themes in McCourt’s memoir. It is difficult to list all the memorable anecdotes contained in McCourt’s memoir a few that stand out are, the generosity of the Italian Grocer in Brooklyn and McCourt’s first Holy Communion, wherein God was regurgitated into his Grandmother’s garden. McCourt’s voice is fresh, conversational and engaging it was all but impossible to set Angela’s Ashes down.

Availability: SMCM Library
Review Submitted by: Kevin Oldfield
Rating: Must Read