<< 1 >>
Rating: 
Summary: Witty, Nostalgic and Creative
Review: Evelyn Ryan is a woman who will soon touch your heart. In spite of her violent, alcoholic husband, she struggles to raise six sons and four daughters in the 50's and 60's. What makes Evelyn so unique is the method in which she manages to come up with the financial resources to provide for the family. She enters contest after contest, winning everything from cash prizes, household appliances, bicycles and car to trips and televisions. Miraculously, prizes seem to be won just when they are most needed.The story is fascinating and certainly captures the reader's compassion; however, the jingles became somewhat of a repetitious aggravation towards the end of the book. The book takes place during an era when the amount of cash won, certainly would not have the same monetary value by today's cost of living. With Evelyn's poems, jingles and rhymes she seems to have "an angel on her shoulder" as she struggles to make ends meet and put food on the table. While the book is not in-depth reading material and could use some additional editing, it is amazing to learn of Evelyn's creative talents and miraculous good fortune in a time of great need. If she were to try her accomplished ability today, she might be considered somewhat of a flourishing entrepreneur!
Rating: 
Summary: Highly Recommend
Review: I thought Terry Ryan overall did an exceptional job sharing her mother with us. Not only is Prize Winner inspirational, it brings back Americana in the 50's. Her narrative could have been written with a bit more creativity. (Having A few less jingles would not have lessened the essence). I was intrigued with Evelyn's capricious style of handling the unexpected challenges that life can throw you. Her imagination and creativity was a true gift, a proven affirmation that you can find and focus on the positive, not just see the negative in life. Terry did a great job capturing this in her book. Prize Winner also enlightens you on the strategy used in advertising back then. This is in response to June 4, 2004, from a reader in Maryland: I understand questioning Evelyn's ethical standards regarding entering contest's with false names and teaching her children how to lie. You were harsh and unfair though, with your comments regarding her children and marriage. In the 50's you did not have women shelters or crisis centers. Majority of women were not trained to be professionals, capable of being the breadwinners of the family. Back then, babies and marriages weren't as disposable as they are today. You can't change what was, you can only learn from it to move on. Of course Evelyn made some mistakes, who hasn't! This story offered much more though. Just think, the memories written in the books to come will be titled: "My Life in Daycare", or "The Many Partners of my Parents".
Rating:
Summary: Inspiring
Review: It's rare that I would use the word "inspiring" to describe a book, finding most books that purport to be inspirational are in fact overly sentimental and predictable. But this book deserves that description. Using clear, straightfoward prose, Terry Ryan tells the story of how her mother, married to an alcoholic who drank much of the family's small income, raised ten children in a small Ohio town. Advised at one point to take in laundry, Mrs. Ryan chose instead to earn much-needed extra income by entering jingle-writing contests, and writing humorous poems and short stories. She won frequently enough, and had enough of her poems and stories published, to keep the family afloat despite their financial difficulties. Important as the money was, it was also her emotional strength that kept the family going. Her story would no doubt be worthy of respect no matter who told it, but in Terry Ryan's hands it has gone beyond the mundane and cliched to become something moving and memorable.
Rating:
Summary: A wonderful tribute to an incredible spirit.
Review: Terry Ryan grew up as one of ten children in a chaotic household in Definace, Ohio. Her mother Evelyn worked tirelessly to stretch the small amount of money her father brought home, especially since that husband, Kelly Ryan, was an alcoholic. Evelyn turned to contests to bring in money and prizes to keep her family afloat. A witty, well-read woman who was determined to see the bright side of every situation, Evelyn kept the family together. This is a warm, honest look at life in the 1950's and 60's. After turning to the police and the church for help, the family learns to rely on a close network of family and friends. Most of all, this big family learn to look out for one another and to help whenever they could. The rhythm of life in a big family comes out loud and clear, the constant struggle for space, for recognition, and the many trips to schools, dentists and doctors, even the occasional visit to the police. There are many times when the Ryan family was close to eviction,or completely empty cupboards. The family went without many times, but don't seem to carry a lasting sense of deprivation. Terry Ryan is also very upfront about the effects of her father's drinking, the anger, the violence and the resentment. It is also a look at a woman who seemed to be restricted by times and circumstances expressed her wit and gift for words. This is a wonderful tribute to a mother who was determined to do all she could to give her family what they needed. The monetary struggles are borne with a fierce dignity (although hindsight makes the author realize that it took its toll). Evelyn Ryan's refusal to give in to self pity or anger, and her compassion and understanding for others' shortcomings are remarkable and the greatest legacy any mother could leave her family.
Rating:
Summary: Mrs. Ryan is an Inspiration
Review: This is a daughter's wonderful tribute to a remarkable woman; very well-written. It is, at times, quite sad. Evelyn Ryan was such a remarkable woman, with an amazing story. You just have to read it. She is very inspiring. It says a lot for the skill of Terry Ryan as an author, for the reader to be able to feel so close to the people she writes about. You are right there while you read, you feel the emotion right along with everyone else. While I read, I felt as though I was growing up alongside the other kids, and felt as much sadness as a grown child left home as the younger kids. I was completely immersed in the Ryan family. I highly recommend this book. When so many biographies are of the rich and (in)famous, it was lovely to read about an ordinary woman who was far from ordinary. She is an inspiration to her children, and she will be to you.
Rating:
Summary: A story of family love
Review: This is the story of Evelyn Ryan, a housewife and mother of 10 children who supplements the sometimes unsteady income of her alcoholic husband with contest winnings during the 1950's. She has a special talent for creating winning slogans, poems and jingles and wins many smaller prizes including kitchen appliances and cash but occasionally strikes it big wining large sweepstakes prizes, bailing out the family's financial situation on more than one occasion. Written by Evelyn's daughter, it warmed my heart to read about the love that was shared in this large family. No, this was not a perfect family (are there any?) But in spite of the financial challenges that faced this family, the enthusiasm, optimism, and spirit exhibited by the mom and passed on to the children are truly characteristics to be admired.
<< 1 >>
| 
