"Angela's Ashes" - Frank McCourt

Published in 1996 by Scribner

When I was 11 or 12 I read this book and thought it was the best thing ever, so rereading it and actually still enjoying it was a true treat!  Admittedly, the parts I remember most vividly aren't really huge story points and probably just stuck in my young mind most because they were my first introduction to some grown up themes.

"Angela's Ashes" is the story of Frankie McCourt and his life from age 1-20, growing up first in New York, then in Ireland, and his final journey back to America.  Like many memoirs, there is a drunk father and a sick mother, but it is his writing style that makes it interesting and colorful instead of sad and melodramatic.  I was swept up with his sentences, reading in an accent in my head, and incapable of putting the book down even at 2 am before I had a morning shift.

While at times sad (the gains and losses of his siblings) it is also a funny, compelling and heartwarming (at times) tale of growing up and being forced to take responsibility for himself and his family at a young age.

Still one of my favorites.

Rating: ****

"Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close" - Jonathan Safran Foer

Published in 2005 by Mariner Books

Oskar is sure that the key he found in a vase is a final message from his father, who died in the September 11, 2001 attack on the Twin Towers.  He pledges to find it's meaning and embarks on a journey through Manhattan with his upstairs neighbor Mr. Black.  The story includes writing from the perspective of Oskar, his grandmother (through letters to Oskar) and his grandfather (through letters written to the Son he would never meet.)

I personally enjoyed the story but was not blown away by the writing.  Sadly, this was also my experience with Foer’s novel “Everything is Illuminated” as well.  Maybe I just don’t like his style, maybe its something else, I don’t know.  In this case, I found the characters to be lacking in life.  As if no matter how hard I tried, they just didn’t seem real or likeable.

Quotes:

“But there was always work to be done. We spent our lives making livings.”

“…Our lives are like skyscrapers.  The smoke rises at different speeds, but they’re all on fire, and we’re all trapped.”

Rating: ***