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'Tis  By  cover art

'Tis

By: Frank McCourt
Narrated by: Frank McCourt
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Publisher's summary

The same vulnerable but invincible spirit that captured our hearts in the Pulitzer Prize-winning memoir Angela's Ashes comes of age in 'Tis.

Listen as Frank tells in his own inimitable voice his story of how at the age of 19 he traveled from Limerick to New York in pursuit of the American dream. Despite the abundance of unsolicited advice he gets to "join the cops" and "stick to his own kind", Frank knows that he should educate himself and somehow rise above his circumstances.

And though he left school at 14, he talks his way into New York University, falls in love with the quintessential Yankee, long-legged and blond, and tries to live his dream. But it is not until he starts to teach - and to write - that Frank finds his place in the world. And for those of us who are lucky enough to come across his writings - and captivating readings - 'Tis a wonderful thing that he did.

©1999 Frank McCourt, All Rights Reserved (P)1999 Simon & Schuster Inc., All Rights Reserved, AUDIOWORKS Is an Imprint of Simon & Schuster Audio Division, Simon & Schuster Inc.

What listeners say about 'Tis

Average customer ratings
Overall
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  • 3 Stars
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  • 2 Stars
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  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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  • 3 Stars
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  • 2 Stars
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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Marvelous

I've been a books on tape junkie for a decade but this is my first review.

I like reading customer reviews and just wanted to say that this story totally rocks. I haven't laughed out loud this much with an audio book in years. He's a excellent story teller.

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27 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Philip of Fort Worth Texas

The previous review by Philip of Ft. Worth Texas shows that the man didn't even read the book. Frank McCourt didn't drown in the bottle. If he did, he wouldn't have been writing the most wonderful memoirs of his life. Frank McCourt rules when it comes to narration. Frank Mccourt can teach us all a thing or two about life. LISTEN TO HIS BOOKS!! There are no better. I guarantee you will not be disappointed.

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20 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

A second delightful helping

This is the continuation of the autobiography begun in ANGELA'S ASHES, watching the author return to America, navigating through his late adolescence and early adulthood.

Although every bit as delightfully drawn as the first volume, the voice changes into just what one might expect from a boy loose, on his own in New York City, drinking, whoring, surviving a stint in the military, and struggling to find a comfortable place teaching in the NYC public school system.

Be prepared for the change in tone from the one McCourt used in Angela's Ashes. He's raising himself now, from the street up, and his language is peppered with all the color (what my parents would call unnecesary cursing) you might expect from most any young lad his age. If you listen carefully, though, you'll hear the same sensitive heart beating in the story, again masterfully read by McCourt.

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19 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

'Tis one of my favorites

'Tis is the final chapter of a story begun with Angela's Ashes. In this book Frank McCourt, like many of us, struggled with much of the banality of life. This seemed so more evident in 'Tis than in Angela's Ashes. 'Tis lacks the vivid imagery, the depths of pathos and the unmitigated joy and anticipation of childhood dreams unfulfilled. But McCourt's lilting Irish voice is still there adding to 'Tis that same quality of intimacy and authenticity. By much of 'Tis, McCourt has overcome the real impediments in his life. It doesn't matter that not as much happens in 'Tis. He has made it back to America, after all. (In how many cases do our adult lives measure up to our childhood fantacies, anyway?) 'Tis is the needed punctuation to complete his story. McCourt's often inability to know what to do is only obvious to us because we are viewing from the outside with the benefit of his 20/20 hindsight. If most of us did what McCourt did and penned our own lives as openly and honestly, we would see that in this sense Frank McCourt is truly Everyman.

It is a book that affirms the beauty of being human with all its dreams, hopes, banalities, failures and successes.

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18 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

I Love Frank

Angela's Ashes left me wanting to know what happened to Frank and family and 'Tis answers.

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12 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Belly Laugh Funny

I listened to 'Tis straight through and couldn't wait to get Teacher Man loaded on my Ipod. Frank McCourt has such a way of saying the truth about everything. He says things other people wish they could say. He keeps things simple, real and funny. And that's the way life should be.

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12 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Well written and well read

Frank McCourt continues the narrative of his life begun with "Angela's Ashes." His reading of the book adds a whole new dimension to the printed page, as he mimics the voices and accents of the people he quotes and adopts a slightly bemused and detached tone to some of the darker passages, giving a greater complexity of meaning.
The last quarter of the book reads more like an epilogue. The stories become more fragmented, the character descriptions more circumspect and less insightful. All in all, however, I found the book a good read and difficult to put down. It was almost as good as "Angela's Ashes."

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11 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

It certainly 'Tis!

Frank McCourt narrates 'Tis himself, having that beautiful Irish lilt in his voice that made his childhood more real, more touchable as I listened. I could almost smell the filth in the streets above the cooking of fish and whatever is available. I could hear Frank and his siblings playfully fighting in bed, freezing and hungry but having such fun. His mother had many hardships since her husband generally didn't bring home a paycheck and eventually took off. Frank, being the oldest, worked like crazy doing anything at all for money, and became smarter about it. Mostly flat broke, it's less of a moral decision when there's a coin to be made, and he learns the best ways to make more from some. His family needs the money, but Frank is saving to go to America. Often teased about his "dream," the most unlikely people help him to realize his dream, and his family to literally stay alive. I didn't want it to end!

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9 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Not quite as good as the first one

I really enjoyed Angela's Ashes and wanted more of Frank McCourt's amazing life and family so I was excited to listen to the sequel. The narration is fantastic and there were a few touching and hilarious moments but I definitely like the first one better. You could do a lot worse than this book - if you want to know what happened to Frank then you'll have to download it and find out for yourself.

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7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

A Simply Gorgeous Novel

This is the best read (listen of the year). Between the tears there is a good laugh and sooo much heart. Never a boring minute.

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7 people found this helpful