Teacher Man: A Memoir

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It's a hit!

“Inspirational” is a word often used to describe events or people who might be admirable or worthy of respect and praise but who are not truly “ins... (show more)

“Inspirational” is a word often used to describe events or people who might be admirable or worthy of respect and praise but who are not truly “inspirational.” Frank McCourt, and the three volumes of his autobiography—this one in particular—defines inspiration.

Of course, as a former English teacher, I am biased in my estimation of this memoir, written by an award-winning former English teacher. His writing, his insights, his humor, his wisdom are genuine, real, honest. More than just a collection of touching and funny anecdotes, this book is a spirit guide for every English teacher who ever doubted his or her skill (we all do from time to time) or who ever wondered how in the world it’s possible to convey to adolescents the wonder, beauty, and value of language.

*Teacher Man* is required reading for all pre-service and in-service English teachers—and in the Methods courses that I teach, it will be the first book I assign to my students. (show less)

 

 

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No, it's a flop!

Published in 2005, this book was said to relate more of Frank McCourts life - particularly his life as a teacher in New York. I found this book to ... (show more)

Published in 2005, this book was said to relate more of Frank McCourts life - particularly his life as a teacher in New York. I found this book to be a lot different to Angela's Ashes. It seemed to be more bitter and harsher than his first book. In fact, some parts of it led me to believe that he really was not a very nice person at all - despite his reasoning for his feelings etc. Born in New York, he was the eldest of seven children born to Irish immigrant parents who later returned to Ireland, where they slipped ever deeper into poverty during the 1930s. When he returned to the States, he was castigated for his Irish accent and when he had been in Ireland he was picked on for sounding American. This feeling of being an outsider colours many of his comments and rang with authenticity. I did not enjoy this book at all. His bitterness was certainly on display and, apart from the money he must have made with it, really had nothing to say. He wrote most of this book whilst staying at the Savoy in London whilst acting as writer-in-residence. Surroundings which would be a far cry from his earlier and later life. Although the blurb and the critics comment recommends this to be read by all teachers - I really hope that they don't. Frank McCourt died in 2009 of metastic melanoma (a form of skin cancer). I would not waste any money on purchasing this book or reserving it via a library. If found on a second sale - if less than 50p - there are certain parts of the story worth 50p. (show less)

 

 

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  The author wrote 3 books about his life: Angela's Ashes, 'Tis, and Teacher Man. They are sequential; however, I read them out of order. I read Angelas Ashes first and then read Teacher man before 'Tis. I really enjoyed Teacher Man although I still can't believe that he was admitted to NYU with no high school education. But it just shows that he was able to overcome every obstacle in his poverty stricken life. I loved the stories about his years as a teacher and how he dealt with the students.... (show more)

  The author wrote 3 books about his life: Angela's Ashes, 'Tis, and Teacher Man. They are sequential; however, I read them out of order. I read Angelas Ashes first and then read Teacher man before 'Tis. I really enjoyed Teacher Man although I still can't believe that he was admitted to NYU with no high school education. But it just shows that he was able to overcome every obstacle in his poverty stricken life. I loved the stories about his years as a teacher and how he dealt with the students. It was very entertaining to see how he would turn around situations in the classroom into learning experiences. He finds the creativity in his student's excuse notes and turns them into a creative writing exercise. He eventually becomes a creative writing teacher which I think is a perfect job for him, as he really knows how to bring out the creativity in his students. This must have lead to his own writing career and even though he wrote 3 memoirs of his life I realize now that he used some creative elaboration in the story of his life. It's all true but most likely with some fabrications of the imagination.....But I'm ok with that. (show less)

   

   

  by Facebook User on Oct 26, 2009 at 04:57PM

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  McCourt has a unique and brilliant way with words, as seen in Angela's Ashes and 'Tis, and although his first two books were much more lyrical and story-like, Teacher Man has echoes of his style as well. I think the reason McCourt shied away from the lyrical style in this book, though, was because he was trying to figure out his own emotions on the topic. He wanted to figure out just why did he spend his whole life teaching high school English, just why did he stop climbing the corporate ladd... (show more)

  McCourt has a unique and brilliant way with words, as seen in Angela's Ashes and 'Tis, and although his first two books were much more lyrical and story-like, Teacher Man has echoes of his style as well. I think the reason McCourt shied away from the lyrical style in this book, though, was because he was trying to figure out his own emotions on the topic. He wanted to figure out just why did he spend his whole life teaching high school English, just why did he stop climbing the corporate ladder, just why didn't he write anything until the years had crept up on him? I don't think he arrived at any answers--he lets us come up with our own-- but along the way he gave us glimpses into the life of a teacher. And, contrary to what some readers feel, I don't think he was in any way pompous or self-promoting. Rather, I found myself wondering how a man could have such shaky self-esteem and I wanted to hug him, hear him speak in his soft Irish voice, see him in his nerdy teacher clothes and old-man build, listen to his stories. He is a wise, wise man, and I am thankful he wrote all three of these books, different though they are, because I enjoyed all three of them for different reasons. (show less)

   

   

  by Facebook User on Jul 30, 2008 at 04:03PM

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