2006 ( )

One of those books you can't lay down. Have read it more than once, and watched the movie. A story that reminds people to be thankful for what they have. Shows what a mother will do to keep a roof over her childrens heads and food in their tummies. ( )

A simply delightful book to read. Set in the 1950s, the author's family struggled to make ends meet. Ten kids and an alcoholic husband drained what income they had. Evelyn Ryan, was an amazing woman and by entering contests, she managed to provide an additional income and prizes to support her family. Evelyn's daughter, Terry, tells an entertaining story about her mom. It's clear that she admired and loved her mother a great deal. Her voice rings true though, and her resourceful mother managed to win shopping sprees to put food on the table and in the freezer. She stockpiled the prizes she won and gave them to her children as Christmas presents. She won a washing machine and a car, which she sold for the much needed cash. Evelyn saved everything and the book has pictures of the contests she entered and her winning slogans and jingles. It's an entertaining story of a woman who will do anything necessary to provide for her children. The ending is heartwarming, as the children go through their mother's cedar chest, they discover her notebooks and contest entries, but also the secret to their mother's circumstances in life and what she overcame to raise them. A terrific book. ( )

I tore through this book until the last page - the star of this inspirational tale, Evelyn Ryan, is one of the most amazing characters I've ever seen on page. Amazing still, that she was a real person, a 50's housewife raising ten children with little to no help from her alcoholic husband. This would be a tale of woe if it weren't for Evelyn's ingenuity, skill, and luck at entering contests. Her cute and clever rhyming jingles, included appropriately throughout the book along with the kitschy ads and contest forms that inspired them, were all a part of this overwhelmed mom's can-do attitude. The family certainly wouldn't have survived without her. Not only the glue that kept the family together, her prizes here and there replaced broken appliances, helped pay the bills, and even bought the Ryans a house! For every major adversity, Evelyn's prizes saved the day.

It's amazing how much this woman accomplished with so much stacked against her, and here I complain I don't have time to do the dishes. ( )

As memoirs go, this will always be one of my favorites. The take-away message in this book is that a positive outlook will take you every where you want to go. In my life, I would leave the negative, drunk husband and would also have encouraged Evelyn Ryan to do the same. However, She had the grace to accept him for who he was, ask him to improve and when he could not to get out of the way of her happiness. Despite the hardships, she raised her 10 children to expect more from life and to stay positive. Her lessons were ahead of their time, despite her traditional outlook, for instance when she allows her children to voice their hatred of their dad, or the catholic nuns who look down on them, but shows them where to put that anger where so that it does not consume them in addictions and unhappiness. The 2005 movie, which condenses but follows the book perfectly, is also worth watching. ( )