Angela's
Ashes
by Frank McCourt
About the book…
Winner of the Pulitzer Prize, Frank McCourt's Angela's Ashes
describes the author's impoverished childhood. Born in depression era
Brooklyn, Frank is four years old when his parents move back to Ireland.
Growing up in the slums of Limerick, Frank is surrounded by cold, rain,
poverty, and death. The author's unique insights soften the blows,
making Angela's Ashes a memorable reading experience.
About the author…
Frank McCourt was born in 1931 in Brooklyn, New York, to Irish immigrant
parents. He grew up in Limerick, Ireland, and returned to America in
1949. For thirty years McCourt taught in various New York City high
schools, including Stuyvesant, and in city colleges. He lives with his
wife, Ellen, in New York City and Connecticut.
Discussion Questions:
1. Countless memoirs have been published recently, yet Angela's
Ashes stands out. What makes this memoir so unique and
compelling?
2. Discuss the originality and immediacy of Frank McCourt's voice and
the style he employs -- i.e., his sparing use of commas, the absence
of quotation marks. How, through a child's voice and perspective,
does McCourt establish and maintain credibility?
3. Ever present in Angela's Ashes is the Catholic Church. In
what ways does the Catholic Church of McCourt's Ireland hurt its
members and limit their experience? How does the Church protect and
nurture its followers? What is Frank's attitude toward the Church?
4. McCourt writes: "I think my father is like the Holy Trinity
with three people in him, the one in the morning with the paper, the
one at night with the stories and prayers, and then the one who does
the bad thing and comes home with the smell of whiskey and wants us
to die for Ireland." Was this your impression of Frank
McCourt's father? How can Frank write about his father without
bitterness? What part did Malachy play in creating the person that
Frank eventually became?
5. Women -- in particular mothers -- play a significant role in Angela's
Ashes. Recall the scenes between Angela and her children; the
MacNamara sisters (Delia and Philomena) and Malachy; Aunt Aggie and
young Frank; Angela and her own mother. In what ways do these
interactions reflect the roles of women within their families?
Discuss the ways in which Angela struggles to keep her family
together in the most desperate of circumstances.
6. McCourt titles his memoir Angela's Ashes, after his mother.
What significance does the phrase "Angela's Ashes" acquire
by the end of the book?
7. Despite the McCourts' horrid poverty, mind-numbing starvation, and
devastating losses, Angela's Ashes is not a tragic memoir. In
fact, it is uplifting, triumphant even. How does McCourt accomplish
this?
8. Irish songs and lyrics are prominently featured in Angela's
Ashes. How do these lyrics contribute to the unique voice of
this memoir? How does music affect Frank's experiences? How do you
think it continues to influence his memories of his childhood?
9. Frank spent the first four years of his life in the United States.
How do his experiences in America affect Frank's years in Ireland?
Questions courtesy of Simon
& Schuster
