Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

A Monk Swimming

3.28 of 5 stars 3.28 · rating details · 2,197 ratings · 172 reviews

Slapped with a libel suit after an appearance on a talk show,Malachy McCourt crows, "If they could only see me now in the slums of Limerick, a big shot, sued for a million. Bejesus, isn't America a great and wonderful country" His older brother Frank's Pulitzer Prize-winning memoir, Angela's Ashes, took its somber tone from the bleak atmosphere of those slums, while Malach...more

Paperback, 290 pages

Published June 2nd 1999 by Hyperion (first published May 26th 1998)

more details... edit details

Get a copy:

More…

Friend Reviews

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.

Lists with This Book

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer

Tales of New York City

97th out of 535 books — 557 voters

Surviving The Fourth Cycle by Nathan Daniels

Adversity Builds Character; An Inspirational True Life Story ... by Tom Ufert

Running with Scissors by Augusten Burroughs

Memoirs by Men

35th out of 378 books — 285 voters

More lists with this book...

Community Reviews

(showing 1-30 of 3,000)

filter | sort: default (?) | rating details

Sep 02, 2007 Tory rated it 2 of 5 stars

"Hastily, I transferred the snow to the burning part of the mattress and extinguished it, I thought, but an hour or so after I went back to sleep, the smoke revisited me. Bounding out of the bed again, I went for a jug of water and sloshed it all over the spifflicated Paterson. The man hardly stirred, but my mission was complete : Fire Out! and back to bed.

Sometime later I was awakened abruptly and rudely by a rough hand shaking and thumping me. When I opened my eyes to see who it was that had t...more "Hastily, I transferred the snow to the burning part of the mattress and extinguished it, I thought, but an hour or so after I went back to sleep, the smoke revisited me. Bounding out of the bed again, I went for a jug of water and sloshed it all over the spifflicated Paterson. The man hardly stirred, but my mission was complete : Fire Out! and back to bed.

Sometime later I was awakened abruptly and rudely by a rough hand shaking and thumping me. When I opened my eyes to see who it was that had the temerity to behave thusly, I almost had the cardiac seizure. I saw a head crowned wit spikes of ice, icily protruding eyebrows and eyelashes, icicled dripping from the nose. In a very high, indignant voice, the arctic apparition informed me that he was nearly frozen to death. Never in his life had he been subjected to such a horrible place, and he was leaving, and there was no point in trying to stop him."

"In Zurich… Everything was neat and symmetrical and orderly, and not a thing in sight to disturb the color scheme. Flowers, shrubs, and plants all clipped and leaning in unison to the direction of the unseen hand. There were people washing and hosing pavements, cleaning windows, polishing bells, painting walls, and generally doing violence to the natural orders of things. A weed poking its cheery little head up through a crack in a footpath would be cause for mobilization of the Swiss Army and their knives."

This book is the memoirs of Malachy McCourt, who I’d never heard of before I read this book. His brother is the author of Anglela’s Ashes, which I have not read.

A lot of this book was funny, really really funny. But then the rest was just his sad and slightly pathetic existence of drinking and making an ass of himself. It was the drunken tales of an alcoholic. The end was him screaming at his Father for being a drunk that abandoned his family, yet really, it was the same thing he had done. And that was it.

It never went on to say if he became a good father - you know, one that didn’t leave the country for months on end, and didn’t spend every penny he had on the sauce, or ever got his shit together.

So beside some of the funny scenes, the beginning romanticized alcoholism, and the end was incomplete. Maybe that's because it was a memoir and he wasn't dead. Who knows.(less)

1 like · like · see review

Jan 11, 2009 Faith rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2005, biography

Malachy McCourt is Frank McCourt's brother (u know Angela's Ashes). It's very obvious that they are brothers. They've got the same kind of humor and attitude to life. And they are good storytellers too. But however, the truth is that it is Frank, the older brother, who is the real literary genius, Or then it's just that he writes about "more interesting things". Well, they both write about their own lives, and Malachy's surely is more unusual. Traveling around the world and smuggling gold... whi...more

1 like · like · see review

Jul 13, 2010 Kyle rated it 4 of 5 stars

I found a paperback copy of "A Monk Swimming" at Savers for like a $1.50. Since I couldn't resist the deal and the back description seemed interesting enough, I bought it. Besides being a bargain, reading McCourt's memoir gave me the chance to regain my respect for Irish culture (that has been so commercialized the past decade--with all the "I Love Ireland" and Ireland this, Irish that...I'm not entirely sure if this is a problem anywhere besides the U.S.? Anyways, I'll get to my point. McCourt'...more

like · see review

Aug 17, 2010 John rated it 3 of 5 stars

I enjoyed being a voyeur on this 290 page, 10 year pub crawl through mid-century New York. In his day Malachy was a prolific philanderer, drinker, footballer and con man. Never wanting for enthusiasm or humor, there are also deep roots of rage at his father who subjected his children to an alcohol induced poverty before abandoning them. MM's desire to escape this upbringing propels him to heights of fame and frolic before he too sadly falls from the weight of his own inebriated, self absorption....more

1 like · like · see review

Feb 20, 2009 Shannon rated it 5 of 5 stars

I absolutely loved this book. I found it in a used bookstore while on vacation. I'd read Angela's Ashes, 'Tis, and Teacher Man (and done book reports on the first two for school), so my eyes lit up when I saw another McCourt memoir. I was at the beach, and I had a desire for some light reading (to go with a Dubliners CD I'd just gotten), and this fit the bill 100%. It's a much lighter story than Angela's Ashes, being devoid of most of the grimmer bits. The difference in the writing style of the...more

1 like · like · see review

May 09, 2012 Annett rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

1 like · like · see review

Apr 04, 2013 Chris Bushman rated it 4 of 5 stars

Have you ever reminisced with a sibling and wondered how you could both have grown up in the same house? Brother Frank's modern classic, Angela's Ashes, is a eyes-wide-open family memoir of bone-crushing poverty in the lowest-class, alcoholic, despair-laden Dublin slums.

Malachy's memoir could be subtitled: "How a good-natured Irishman drunkenly stumbled to fame and fortune in New York City".

If you shook your head and cried in disbelief over the crazy decisions the adults made in Angela's Ashes,...more

like · see review

Jul 28, 2010 Kiri rated it 3 of 5 stars

Ah, Malachy! What a rogue you are! What a fine fellow, life of the party, entrepreneur, smuggler, actor, fool. One gets the sense that Malachy knows, as he describes his years of drunken rowdiness, failed relationships, illegal activities, etc, that he is aware that he was not a good husband, and perhaps not much better father than his own... but he never SAYS so, and I think that may be where the book falls down. It is only in the final chapter, when his father comes to New York and turns out t...more

like · see review

Apr 15, 2011 Rene rated it 3 of 5 stars

I love Memoirs and this one was entertaining to say the least. Malachy McCourt's style is choppy yet filled with humour. He has a way with phrasing things that had me laughing out loud. One term I will never forget is his phrase for an Airplane: "Aerial Donkey Cart"- hilarious! This book is very different from his brother Frank McCourt's book, Angela's Ashes which was beautifully written and one of my favorite books ever. Malachy recounts his poverish childhood in Irleand and his adventures in A...more

like · see review

Jun 02, 2013 Richard Reinhart rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: reviews

Malachy McCourt left a childhood of poverty in Limerick, Ireland, heading for America. This is the story of what he brought with him, and what he thought he left behind. Larger than life, a world-class drinker, McCourt carved out a place for himself in New York City: in the saloons, as the first celebrity bartender, mixing with all types of people , he even appeared on television where the tales spun made him a Tonight Show regular. I think the theme of this book is change. Malachy came from a p...more

like · see review

Apr 14, 2008 Leslie rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I still like his writing better than Frank's (his brother). And seeing him in person is a TREAT.

1 like · like · see review

Jan 06, 2012 David Shaw rated it 2 of 5 stars

If you can find any interest into Malachy McCourt's endless pursuit for drinking, promiscuity and living a full-fledged hedonistic lifestyle, then this is the book for you.

Beyond that, he only demonstrates how reprehensibly immoral he is with respect to his treatment of marriage, and more so his dedication to his children. If there is any redemption to be attained on his part, he certainly does not make any case for it.

Yes, the book begins off comically, recounting stories of how he arrives to A...more If you can find any interest into Malachy McCourt's endless pursuit for drinking, promiscuity and living a full-fledged hedonistic lifestyle, then this is the book for you.

Beyond that, he only demonstrates how reprehensibly immoral he is with respect to his treatment of marriage, and more so his dedication to his children. If there is any redemption to be attained on his part, he certainly does not make any case for it.

Yes, the book begins off comically, recounting stories of how he arrives to America and the trials and tribulations that ensue. In the early stages of the book, the stage is potentially set for an unfolding of important events and thus insight or life lessons, ingredients that would suit a memoir-type novel appropriately.

As far as I could tell, what follows for the final 250 pages is a continuous reminder of how much of a sot Malachy was, even though it does prove destructive towards his familial affairs. This as much is even acknowledged by Malachy, though it may only be in retrospect.

If this story provides 'true' accounts and anecdotes of Malachy's life, then it is fair enough to spare any criticism towards lack of plot. That being said, to maintain (at least my) interest, there must be some strategy and compulsion to engage the reader for the long haul. I found none. Rather, I tried to find some comedy in the telling of his stories, and kept optimistic that there would be a valuable lesson or perhaps some epiphany on Malachy's part from his lifelong moral transgressions.
Not likely.

Just as Malachy liked to imbibe and 'dip the wick' to his fulfillment, this book just seems to be an opportunity to bask in his conceit, using his childhood misfortunes as blame for his moral degradation.

I give this review 2 stars because he does provide some momentary humour, and he uses the English language in a creative way to describe situations and express himself.

Beyond this, I have even less respect or admiration for Malachy McCourt than before I had read this.

I'm not sure whether that was his intention.

P.S. I am Irish-Canadian, not too different from the ancestral background of Malachy, and I find it is quite unnecessary to perpetuate the stereotype of Irishmen as being disgraceful drunks and morons.
Didn't his brother Frank McCourt already profit enough of this exploit in his series of novels before this one? (e.g. Angela's Ashes, 'Tis, etc.)

(less)

1 like · like · see review

Aug 07, 2009 Joe Mossa rated it 1 of 5 stars

i finished this book out of regard for frank mccourt. malachy s language is a homemade brand of funny english. this funny language and the funny episodes make the book bareable. after reading bios of jack kerouac and dylan thomas i cannot believe how much alcohol a human can drink and remain alive. the first two lived short lives and malachy is in his 60s and is about to set a drinking record. after reading many writer s bios, i am concluding that if a person lives the most horrible,non discipl...more

like · see review

Feb 08, 2008 Suzanne rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: summer-read, biography, irish-writing

Just barely OK. Not recommended

like · see review

Nov 01, 2011 Kit★ rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: memoir-or-biography

Picked up this book because I've read all three of Frank McCourt's memoirs, and absolutely loved them, and watched the movie for Angela's Ashes many times, so when I saw this book, I was pretty excited to see one from his brother (and I've also loved the name Malachy since first seeing the movie years ago, just a little side-note there). So, this book was a great, quick read. Easy to get into, good flow... I really liked the author's style. I think it'd be a good one to listen to on audiobook, e...more Picked up this book because I've read all three of Frank McCourt's memoirs, and absolutely loved them, and watched the movie for Angela's Ashes many times, so when I saw this book, I was pretty excited to see one from his brother (and I've also loved the name Malachy since first seeing the movie years ago, just a little side-note there). So, this book was a great, quick read. Easy to get into, good flow... I really liked the author's style. I think it'd be a good one to listen to on audiobook, especially if it were read by Malachy McCourt his self. Maybe it is, I dunno, I got the trade paperback. But the language, the "talking" style, the conversational tone... it was great, I really enjoyed reading his words. If anything, I would've liked more of it. This guy lived a pretty damn exciting life, at least compared to my really dull and unvaried experiences. Travelling 'round the world, hob-nobbing with all sorts of interesting people, seeing the insides of more bars, pubs, and other places of drink than is countable... Wow. Sounds fun, but a lot of not so happy stuff happened too. It reads like a life full of varied experiences, a most definitely interesting life, to say the least. I still would've liked more though. It all kind of seemed to fly by too fast, and end too soon, when I could've kept reading. Especially the end of the book, which ended its narration in the 60's (I think). The author blurb said he's happily married now with more children, so I would've liked to see how he got there. However, I did see on here that there's another book, Singing My Him Song, which apparently tells the rest of the story, so that is so on my wishlist now! This was an enjoyable read, and he seems like a fun guy to hang around with. Oh man though, if I drank as much as he does in this book, I'd probably die! The only other thing I'd say is I'd like to read more of his childhood escapades. The story of him and his friend sneaking into the ladies' snug at the pub, and getting so awfully sloshed, oh it cracked me up. I'd kick my kid's butt for even thinking about trying anything like that, but still, it was hilarious, and his story-telling style just made it better. I'm really glad I found a copy of this book, and I'm gonna keep it in my collection :)(less)

like · see review

Oct 02, 2009 Peter rated it 2 of 5 stars

Memoir of drinking a lot and hobnobbing in Manhattan during the 1950s. Presumably McCourt has matured since those days, but you're not sure whether he is embarrassed or not by his behavior as a youth--a sign of objectivity? Well written, but perhaps because he has been polishing these anecdotes for years. (Note: I only skimmed the last 70 pages because the book had to stay with its owners, so I may have missed the ending of the narrative arc, although it seemed to me to have been lost by that po...more

like · see review

Feb 05, 2009 Devon rated it 3 of 5 stars

Malachy is hilarious. Everything he writes, whether the subject is sad or not, makes you laugh out loud. However, I wasn't a huge fan of his writing style. It was kind of disconnected and sometimes I'd skip big chunks of the story before I realized what I'd done. I doubt I'll rush out to buy his other book, but we'll see. It's definitely worth reading.

like · see review

Mar 27, 2012 Dan Chance rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: biography, childhood, irish

Just more background for childhood in Catholic Ireland. No wonder they stay pickled. Oh Malachy is well enough met if he chooses to throw a story your way instead of a punch but he's just as likely to black your eye or bloody your shin. He is a good storyteller and he DID become a bar owner and tender. Date finished is "not later than".

like · see review

Aug 09, 2011 Katy Brandes rated it 3 of 5 stars

There is less glorification of his alcoholism here than in his first book, so I like this one a bit more. He is funny and a good story teller (albeit not as enjoyable as his brother, Frank, though I shouldn't compare them).

This work dealt more with his sobriety than glorifying his alcoholism through humor like the previous one. He has a great sense of humor regardless, and I find his tales intriguing and funny. This just seems more realistic than the first one.

like · see review

Oct 05, 2010 Celeste Nicole rated it 3 of 5 stars

Frank Mccourt's brother tells a lighter more comical tale of his journey in America after he arrives from Ireland. He is a confident savy Barstar with more swagger than his brother Frank. His personlity shows in his writing style and I think Frank did a excellent job of giving a true protrayl off his attitude in his own memoirs.

like · see review

Dec 09, 2012 Frances Sawaya rated it 1 of 5 stars

Given my respect for Frank McCourt and his apparent love for his brother, Malachy, I was eager to read this first book of Malachy's. Very disappointing. He never chooses the most direct word when a four or five syllable one will do. Silly and pretentious style! Seemed as if he was trying to coast on Frank's successes.

like · see review

Feb 01, 2010 Laura Dahlman rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: memior

I laughed so hard reading this book Malachy get's into quite the shenanigans. It's A lot more lighthearted than his brother's book Angela's Ashes but it still has it's ups and downs. I did find it a bit hard to understand at times, as he has an amazing vocabulary, and I had to stop and look up some words.

like · see review

Apr 06, 2009 Louise rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: memoirs

This book wasn't as well written as Malachy's brother Frank's Angela's Ashes and Tis was. Although he makes a good attempt at getting his story across, I found his choice of words at times left alot to be desired. I feel he could have written a better memoir that would have held the readers attention easier than the "force yourself to finish it" mode I was in. Nonetheless, not a bad story just not high on my list as one of the better books I've read.

like · see review

Jan 11, 2009 Sephie rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: auto_biog

Not as good as expected. This guy was a bit of a 'cavalier', telling his tales of drinking, fighting, womanising and gold smuggling. I wonder what he's doing these days though? Ah! Wikipedia of course

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malachy_...
and
http://www.malachymccourt.com/

like · see review

Nov 10, 2012 Jean rated it 1 of 5 stars

just couldn't finish this book. I didn't like his writing style, particularly his use of a words seemed geared to impress, rather than express. It rambled on and threw around lots of famous names. the story might have been good but couldn't get through the trappings to enjoy it.

like · see review

Nov 18, 2011 JamesMarinero Marinero added it

Rumbustious fun - if you like drinking, raking and extorting from your friends. So much name dropping, but I'm surprised Dylan Thomas didn't figure in it. Thoroughly enjoyed it, laughed out loud a lot. His style varies, and he appears to be quite erudite. Apparently he fell out with his brother Frank McCourt, as it is not all factually accurate (allegedly)!

like · see review

May 29, 2013 Gal Shadeck rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: misc

A rather feeble attempt to follow in his brother Frank's footsteps. While Frank McCourt's "Angela's ashes" (and, to a lesser extent, its sequels) is a coherent and profound narrative, this is just a collection of anecdotes from a person who's lived a moderately interesting life.

like · see review

May 28, 2007 Kelly rated it 3 of 5 stars Recommends it for: the bloody, afflicted Irish

Shelves: bookclubread

Read this for our book club. I emailed Malachy and asked him what we should discuss and he wrote back:

DEAR KELLY GIRL

A GOOD QUESTION IS WHY WOULD A MAN WHO HAS SUFFERED A FATHERS DRINKING AND DESERTION DO EXACTLY THE SMAE THING AND WHY DID THE MAN DRINK SO MUCH AN D HOW COULD SO MUCH SORROW BE SO FUNNY
HOPE THATS ENOUGH TO GO ON
MY BEST TO YOU AND ALL INTHE CLUB

MALACHY

Since then I receive email invitaions to fundraisers/ etc. Most recently to a ball to raise money for his recent bid for Gob'n...more

like · see review

Aug 18, 2010 Kasandra rated it 3 of 5 stars

Funny and sad. McCourt sounds like he's had one of the most adventurous lives one could imagine -- reading of his travels while gold-smuggling was my favorite part of the book. Alcohol-fueled hilarity and heartbreak at the same time.

like · see review

Jun 12, 2013 Carin Carstens rated it 2 of 5 stars

While I'm glad Malachy found more humor in life than his brother Frank, it appears Frank was blessed with both literary talent and compassion. I'm sure his stories would be enjoyable if told over a pint with some whiskey but as a memoir it is unapologetic and incomplete.

like · see review

« previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 … 99 100 next »

new topic
Discuss This Book

There are no discussion topics on this book yet. Be the first to start one »

Recommend it | Stats | Recent status updates

combine
Other Editions (15)

More editions...

Genres

Non Fiction

47 users

Autobiography > Memoir

34 users

Biography

31 users

Cultural > Ireland

18 users

European Literature > Irish Literature

10 users

Humor

8 users

Biography > Autobiography

8 users

Biography Memoir

6 users

History

2 users

Literature

2 users

See top shelves...

Readers also enjoyed similar books

About Malachy McCourt

Malachy Gerard McCourt is an Irish-American actor, writer and politician. He was the 2006 Green party candidate for governor in New York State, losing to the Democratic candidate Eliot Spitzer. He is the younger brother of Frank McCourt.

Malachy McCourt also wrote two memoirs titled A Monk Swimming and Singing my Him Song, detailing his life in Ireland and later return to the United States where de...more

More about Malachy McCourt...

Books by Malachy McCourt

Danny Boy: The Legend of the Beloved Irish Ballad

Voices of Ireland: Classic Writings of a Rich and Rare Land

More…

Share This Book

Facebook Twitter Your website

Trivia About A Monk Swimming

1 trivia question

More quizzes & trivia...

Quotes from A Monk Swimming

“... look, lust, and leave, knowing I could never have one of them for myself.” — 1 person liked it

More quotes…

title link	preview: A Monk Swimming
avg rating	preview: A Monk Swimming Goodreads rating: 3.28 (2197 ratings)
small image	preview: click here [close]
med image	preview: click here [close]
BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4960.A_Monk_Swimming?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348118524l/4960.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4960.A_Monk_Swimming?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]A Monk Swimming by Malachy McCourt[/url]

A Monk Swimming

Friend Reviews

Community Reviews

Share This Book

Share This Book on Your Website