'Misery memoirs' UK publishing success

LONDON, Dec. 18 (UPI) -- "Misery memoirs," stories about abuse, have become a U.K. publishing phenomenon since the success of Frank McCourt's childhood memoir, "Angela's Ashes."

Victoria Barnsley, the chief executive of McCourt's publisher, HarperCollins, says the "misery market" had helped the company's operating profit rise by 31 percent this year, the Sunday Telegraph reported.

"People want to read terrible stories about abuse," she said. "Even celebrity memoirs now usually mention a tough childhood. It's a weird thing about the English psyche."

"People everywhere brag about the woes of their early years, but nothing can compare with the Irish version," McCourt said on the first page of "Angela's Ashes."