Frank McCourt 1930 – 2009

Frank McCourt gained national and worldwide recognition with the publication of his memoirs in 1996. Angela’s Ashes documents his life growing up in Limerick in a squalid tenement with an alcoholic father and a mother whose fate was unavoidably determined by the death of her beloved children and the relentless hardship of an almost unbearable existence. The Pulitzer prize-winner Angela's Ashes has sold several million copies, has been published in 27 countries and translated into 17 languages. Its publication angered many of McCourt’s contemporaries, who questioned his portrayal of life in Limerick in the 1930s. Despite the harsh realities of life that he endured as a young man Frank McCourt carved out a literary life for himself as a result of his love of books and learning. Angela’s Ashes was followed by Tis (1999) and Teacher Man, (2005). In 2007 he published a Christmas children’s picture book called Angela and the Baby Jesus, a fitting and unforgettable tribute to his beloved mother. All above titles as well as the film DVD of Angela’s Ashes are available from branches of Clare County Library.