Where To Start With Malachy McCourt
Malachy McCourt, 2011
Photo: David Shankbone, (CC BY 3.0)
With the passing of Malachy McCourt earlier this year, the city has lost a memorable and authentically New York figure. Born in Brooklyn in 1931 and raised in Limerick, Ireland, McCourt returned to New York in his twenties where he worked a variety of jobs— many detailed in his bestselling 1998 memoir A Monk Swimming—including longshoreman, gold smuggler, actor, owner of the city's first singles bar, radio host, and politician. Famous as a storyteller and quick-witted raconteur, he wrote two colorful memoirs, a history of Ireland, a history of the ballad "Danny Boy," a book about the lore of the Claddagh ring, co-wrote a book about his views on death, and edited an anthology of Irish writing.
Malachy was the last living McCourt brother; he was predeceased by Michael, Alphie, and Frank—author of Angela's Ashes, a poignant memoir about their impoverished childhood which won the Pulitzer Prize for Biography in 1997. Malachy's persona was indelibly Irish American and his writing and storytelling memorably captured the Irish American experience. However, his identity was even more specific: In a 2022 interview, he was asked how he thought about his nationality: "Frank and I often discussed that. In Ireland, we were Yanks and in America, we were Micks, so I didn't know what I was. Frank and I decided that we were not American. We were not Irish. We were New Yorkers, a distinct nationality."
Fittingly, March 17, 2021 (St. Patrick's Day) was celebrated by then-mayor Bill de Blasio as "Malachy McCourt Day" in New York City.
Books by Malachy McCourt
A Monk Swimming: A Memoir
In this bestselling memoir, Malachy recounts his flight from a childhood of poverty in Limerick, Ireland, heading for the promise of America. Armed with savage humor and a gift for storytelling, fueled by rage and the desire never to go hungry again, he ran from memories of a drunken, vanished father and the humiliations of Angela, his mother. He arrived in a fast-moving 1950s New York: a dark, glittering place, with a saloon on every corner, and a new story to embellish every night. Larger than life, a world-class drinker, McCourt carved out a place for himself.
Singing My Him Song (2000)
The author continues his life story beginning in 1963, discussing his careers in show business and politics, his battle with alcoholism, finding true love, and a cancer diagnosis.
Death Need Not Be Fatal (2017)
As he rides the final blocks on his Rascal scooter, McCourt looks at the prospect of his own demise with emotional clarity and insight. In this beautifully rendered memoir, he shows us how to live life to its fullest, how to grow old without acting old, and how to die without regret.
Malachy McCourt's History of Ireland (2001)
An authoritative and engrossing one-volume chronicle of Ireland from pre-Christian times to the present, told with Irish flair by the gifted storyteller. While McCourt vividly describes Ireland's turbulent history, he also offers a cultural survey with fresh insights to the folklore, literature, art, music, and cuisine of Ireland, producing an irresistible tour through the Emerald Isle.
Danny Boy: The Legend of the Beloved Irish Ballad (2002)
Everyone can hum this haunting Irish ballad that inevitably brings a tear to the eye. Where did "Danny Boy" originate, who actually wrote the lyrics, and is it even Irish? McCourt, turns his Irish eye to the song's complex history and myths in an eloquent ode to this classic. He traces the evolution of the music in an unforgettable tribute that brilliantly weaves history with folklore.
Works by the McCourt Brothers
Angela's Ashes: A Memoir
by Frank McCourt
The author recounts his childhood in Depression-era Brooklyn as the child of Irish immigrants who decide to return to worse poverty in Ireland when his infant sister dies.
'Tis: A Memoir
by Frank McCourt
Continues the sometimes harrowing tale of the author's youth as he immigrates from Ireland to the United States, joins the Army, goes to college, and begins building a life.
A Long Stone's Throw
by Alphie McCourt
Describes his flight from his native Ireland in pursuit of his literary siblings, struggles with alcoholism, and efforts to raise a daughter with health challenges.
The Soulswimmer
by Alphie McCourt
A witty and insightful collection of stories, verses, and songs by the youngest of the literary McCourt brothers famous for their Irish memoirs.
Through Irish Eyes: A Visual Companion to Angela McCourt's Ireland
pictures and text compiled by David Pritchard; foreword by Malachy McCourt
A private tour through the world of Frank McCourt's Pulitzer Prize-winning memoir.
The McCourts of New York
a film by Conor McCourt (Malachy's son)
This sequel to The McCourts of Limerick follows the four McCourt brothers after their arrival in New York from the slums of Limerick.
