Frank McCourt's Beloved Ireland

As a little girl, the only things I knew about Ireland				decent shoes to cover his feet from Ireland's
were the leprechaun, the shamrock and the color				biting cold. And he had to walk to school every
green. I had always thought that the leprechaun				day at that. He was forced into child labor to bring
was a cute little mythical creature in a green coat.				food onto their usually empty plates. While
I was completely wrong because just some				recuperating from typhoid fever at a hospital,
years later, I saw a different representation of a				young Frank was introduced to the works of
leprechaun--this time, in a horror movie. That then				Shakespeare. This was where his love for the
made me ponder. Why Ireland had chosen such				English language developed, and it was apparent
an eerie creature to carry the Irish flag, my				from the start that he had a knack for it.
young mind would never understand. I knew				The whole novel is replete with sadness, anguish
nothing more about this country and its culture				and suffering, yet Frank McCourt writes it with
for many years until...Frank McCourt.				dignity. It was just straightforward story-telling.
Ah, who could ever forget the author of "Angela's				And you have to give it to him to make you cry
Ashes"? This riveting memoir tells the story of				and laugh on the same breath; it was just
McCourt and his childhood while growing up in				hysterical. His humor is another story altogether.
Limerick in deplorable living conditions. An alcoholic				Never in the whole book did Frank even insinuate
father who didn't have regular employment, a				any sort of hatred for his country of birth
mother who fell into depression after the death				because in the face of such adversity, it was
of her daughter, a miscarriage later on, and the				always love that brought Frank to eke out a living
subsequent death of her two sons, then two				for his mother and siblings. It was love that helped
more babies afterwards, combined together				him survive with flying colors all the hardships that
make for the perfect melancholic novel. Not to				a young boy his age would not have been able to
mention their family is dirt-poor, living in squalor,				manage. It was love that pushed him to go to the
and the pub-loving father, the only income-earner,				United States and carve a name for himself in the
who only had the occasional odd job, drank away				field of literature where he can show the whole
the money that was supposed to be for food.				world how a poor boy from his beloved Ireland
The McCourts were so poor, Frank did not have				can actually make it big someday.