- Frank McCourt's memoir begins with a bitter regret: His parents should have stayed in New York. After all, it's where his parents married and had five kids (including Frank, our narrator).
- So, why do they leave? And where do they go?
- Turns out, Frank's parents and their four kids (the smallest of the bunch, Margaret, died young) are going back to Ireland, hoping that their family might offer some help.
- Think again.
- Note: Remember that in a memoir, the distinction between the author, character, and narrator can be pretty tricky. In our case, the author and the narrator are 64-year-old Frank McCourt, but the character is Frank McCourt between the ages of 4 and 19. In other words, imagine a four year old telling you a story about a splendiferous day at the zoo. Now imagine that story is being told by the same person, except now they're twenty-four. More than likely, the story is going to change because the narrator has had time to reflect and think about the events in the story. Well, Shmoopers, that's exactly what Frank McCourt is doing.
- And now back to our regularly scheduled program: Frank's busy reflecting on his terrible childhood, and he makes sure to emphasize that it wasn't just terrible, it was miserable.
- It was the worst kind of childhood, because it was an "Irish Catholic childhood" which included an alcoholic father, an anguished mother, know-it-all priests, tyrannical teachers, the fraught political conflict between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland and England.
- And guilt. Lots of guilt.
- As if that wasn't bad enough, it rains a lot in Ireland. (It's probably raining in Ireland right now.)
- What happens when you mix rain and cold weather? Lots and lots of sick people. In fact, there are so many sick people in Limerick that McCourt describes the different "types" of coughs: "asthmatic wheezes, consumptive croaks" (1.5).
- The weather in Limerick is wet and cold most of the year and the only warm and dry places are the pubs and the churches.
- According to Frank, most people think that people from Limerick are uber-religious, but Frank believes they're just trying to get out of the cold and damp.
- Frank tells us a little about his father, Malachy McCourt Sr., who was born in Toome, Country Antrim (part of Northern Ireland).
- FYI: In Angela's Ashes, where you're from is really important. (For more on the importance of geography see our section on "Theme: Patriotism.")
- Apparently Daddy McCourt got in trouble with the wrong people and had to leave Northern Ireland altogether.
- He wound up in New York during Prohibition, which didn't make him happy since he likes to drink. A lot.
- Towards the end of his life, Malachy Sr. grows tired of drinking and returns to Belfast, Northern Ireland where he eventually dies in the Royal Victoria Hospital.
- McCourt then goes on to describe how Angela McCourt ended up in New York.
- Apparently, Angela tries to be a maid in Ireland but it doesn't work out because she can't quite get the hang of the curtsy.
- Angela's mother decides it's probably best if she moves to New York, where there are plenty of other losers. Unfortunately, Angela arrives in New York during the Great Depression. Really bad timing.
- Soon after arriving in New York, she meets Malachy Sr. at a party, and they hit it off really well. So well, in fact, that Frank's conceived that very night.
- Angela's cousins, the MacNamara sisters, force Malachy Sr. and Angela to marry due to the out of wedlock conception.
- Angela and Malachy Sr. are married on a cold March day. Frank McCourt is born in August.
- In November, Malachy Sr. has a bit too much to drink. Instead of sleeping off the alcohol he decides to register his son's birth.
- Unfortunately, he's so inebriated that the clerk has difficulty understanding Malachy Sr.'s ramblings and mumblings and enters "Male" as Frank's name.
- A similar scenario occurs during Frank's baptism when both Malachy Sr. and his friend get drunk and ruin the whole event.
- The MacNamara Sisters warn Angela not to have any more children.
- A year later, Angela gives birth to Malachy Jr.
- Soon after that, twins Eugene and Oliver are born.
- While Angela's busy taking care of the children and the home, Malachy Sr. is out looking for work.
- Even when he's working (which ain't often), Malachy Sr. drinks most of his wages and then comes home singing patriotic songs about Ireland and waking up his boys to sing along.
- Angela has to ask for credit at the local grocery shop in order to feed her family.
- Angela wishes for a girl and soon after Margaret arrives.
- Malachy Sr. is a changed man. He stops drinking and becomes super duper dad (too bad he didn't do that with the boys) until one day, Margaret gets sick and dies.
- Margaret's death leads Malachy Sr. to binge drink. Meanwhile, Angela's swept away by her sadness and there's no one left to take care of the kiddies.
- Luckily, the McCourts have wonderful neighbors who help take care of the three boys.
- Eventually it gets to be too much and the MacNamara sisters are called in.
- Instead of helping their poor cousin, the MacNamara sisters decide the best course of action is to send a letter to Angela's mother asking for money so the McCourts can buy a one-way ticket back to Ireland.
- Soon it's goodbye America and hello Ireland.