'Tis

Unabridged
Author: Frank McCourt
Narrator: Frank McCourt
Genres: Biographies
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Date: September 1999
Length: 14 hours
Ratings:
Formats:
  • CD
  • WMA
Abridged
Author: Frank McCourt
Narrator: Frank McCourt
Genres: History, Biographies, Literary, United States
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Date: September 1999
Length: 6 hours
Ratings:
  • Book Rating: 4/5
Formats:
  • CD

Overview

Frank McCourt's glorious childhood memoir, Angela's Ashes, has been loved and celebrated by listeners everywhere for its spirit, its wit and its profound humanity. A tale of redemption, in which storytelling itself is the source of salvation, it won the National Book Critics Circle Award, the Los Angeles Times Book Award and the Pulitzer Prize. Rarely has a book so swiftly found its place on the literary landscape.

And now we have 'Tis, the story of Frank's American journey from impoverished immigrant to brilliant teacher and raconteur. Frank lands in New York at nineteen, in the company of a priest he meets on the boat. He gets a job at the Biltmore Hotel, where he immediately encounters the vivid hierarchies of this "classless country," and then is drafted into the army and is sent to Germany to train dogs and type reports. It is Frank's incomparable voice -- his uncanny humor and his astonishing ear for dialogue -- that renders these experiences spellbinding.

When Frank returns to America in 1953, he works on the docks, always resisting what everyone tells him, that men and women who have dreamed and toiled for years to get to America should "stick to their own kind" once they arrive. Somehow, Frank knows that he should be getting an education, and though he left school at fourteen, he talks his way into New York University. There, he 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. The same vulnerable but invincible spirit that captured the hearts of listeners in Angela's Ashes comes of age.

Frank McCourt's 'Tis is one of the most eagerly-awaited audiobooks of our time, and it is a masterpiece.

Reviews (19)

'Tis

Written by Anonymous on January 29th, 2008

  • Book Rating: 4/5

After listening to Angela's Ashes and appreciating the life, dreams and humor of Frank McCourt seeking a better life in America's promised land I was eager to download 'Tis to learn where Frank's life adventures took him. He is a remarkable individual with a keen storytelling way about him.

Tis

Written by Anonymous on December 7th, 2007

  • Book Rating: 5/5

I thought this was very funny...so much better than book 1 that he wrote. I highly recommend this book.

'Tis

Written by AZJEM from Phoenix, AZ on November 15th, 2007

  • Book Rating: 4/5

Although I can't argue that Frank McCourt is an exceptional writer, and I thoroughly enjoyed listening to his voice, I found this book a bit depressing, and wished I had rented the abridged version, instead of the 12 unabridged CDs. It seems that whenever Frank desired and worked very hard for something (a better job, an education, a girl), he seemed never satisfied with what he had. It just went on and on with many unhappy experiences, and only a few snatches of humor and happiness. I'll have to think long and hard before I decide if Angela's Ashes is worth my time.

Tis

Written by Allison Scobie-Lloyd on February 13th, 2007

  • Book Rating: 5/5

The author transports you into his world, fraught with difficulties and mini-triumphs. His narrative is often funny and irreverent, at times seems sad but unsentimental... read in his delicious accent it was an absolute delight.

Tis: A Memoir

Written by Sharon S on January 4th, 2007

  • Book Rating: 5/5

Wonderful book - excellent story telling and loved the way Frank narrated - his impersonations were hilarious and entertaining. I was almost sad when it ended....

Tis

Written by Patrick T. Donohue on June 5th, 2006

  • Book Rating: 4/5

Tis is a most entertaining but sad book. I wish Frank McCourt was a bit more tolerant of his mother's weaknesses. I think he would be happier. He neglects to cover his own failures, most importantly his own marriage, with the same degree of harshness he dishes out to his mother. She made a bad choice in a mate and her marriage failed; he made a good choice and still his marriage failed. He is very successful professionally and a failure personnally.

Irish Truth

Written by Anonymous on April 27th, 2006

  • Book Rating: 2/5

Although I could easily relate to much of his Irish truths I found the book less than likable. There was to much swearing(I swear as much as the next person, but this was over the top). Sorry Frank McCourt.

Tis: A Memior

Written by Kevin Morton on March 12th, 2006

  • Book Rating: 5/5

Excellent book - funny, poignant, full of rich characters, and the author's reading was a great and pleasant surprise - enriched the experince. Thanks. : )

'Tis

Written by Anonymous on February 24th, 2006

  • Book Rating: 5/5

What a joy to listen to. I read Angela's Ashes years ago, but had forgotten how this author can make a painful story enjoyable to read. This book also made me look forward to the story that was sometimes heartbreaking. That the book is read by its author only adds to its flavor.

Wonderfully human.

Written by Anonymous on November 9th, 2005

  • Book Rating: 4/5

Fantastic follow up to Angela's Ashes. Both books are so very personal and told with a dry wit that leaves you smiling through your tears. McCourt is so wonderfully human. If only we all could write so intimately.

Author Details

Author Details

McCourt, Frank

"Frank McCourt was born in 1931 in Brooklyn, New York, to Irish immigrant parents; grew up in Limerick, Ireland, and returned to America in 1949. For thirty years he 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."