Brenna B. (demiducky25) reviewed on 11/9/2008 + 161 more book reviews

Helpful Score: 1

An entertaining and quick read--> This was a VERY inspirational story about a woman who managed to keep her family (10 kids!) above the poverty line by using her talent for writing to enter contests in the 1940s and 1950s (jingles, why you like our product in 25 words or less, etc). This book is written by her daughter and you really get a sense of how her mother was a very intelligent, witty, and positive person who started off life with a dream of being a newspaper writer and ended up being a writer in her own way. Evelyn Ryan was trapped in a time period where women were expected to stay at home, but she still found a way to provide for her family. Evelyn's daughter, Terry Ryan paints a very colorful picture of what it was like to live in a house with 10 siblings and an alcoholic father. Her portrayal of her father seems quite realistic- the fear the family felt when he was drinking, how he wanted to stop but was just so consumed by addiction, and the consequences years of drinking took on his body and on his family. Anyway, I felt myself cheering for Evelyn Ryan the entire time and she really shows how any mother would do whatever it is she could do to help her children not only survive, but thrive.

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