The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio: How My Mother Raised 10 Kids on 25 Words or Less

by Terry Ryan

Book Overview

The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio introduces Evelyn Ryan, an enterprising woman who kept poverty at bay with wit, poetry, and perfect prose during the "contest era" of the 1950s and 1960s.

Stepping back into a time when fledgling advertising agencies were active partners with consumers, and everyday people saw possibility in every coupon, Terry Ryan tells how her mother kept the family afloat by writing jingles and contest...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0743211235
• ISBN13: 9780743211239
• Release Date: April 2002
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 0.89 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.6" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

Prize Winner

The Prize Winner of Defiance Ohio is one of the most amazing true stories I have ever read! How one woman's charisma, wit, and devotion kept her family of 12 a float. Set in the 1950's this book has it all but what is most important is to show love. A Mother's love is endless!!!

Great Book and Movie

This was a great book. I love true stories and this was very interesting. It had a little drama and laughs and many uplifting moments. What an amazing woman and story. (The movie was almost as good as the book, worth checking out).

A Prize Winning Story

I've read this book, I own a copy. Aside from being an excellent memoir of life in the smalltown Midwest of the 50's and 60's, it also gives memorable views of other things, large families, the experience of living with an alcoholic, contesting, but more than anything, it speaks to being able to find success in a life that seems hopeless. Evelyn Ryan was a winner because she decided she would be one and she passed that on to her children. It is hard to read of the struggles and the abuse the father inflicted on his family, but it is joyous to read of the triumph of the human spirit in such conditions.

Reads fast but leaves a long memory

You know how sometimes you read a book, and then a year or two later you can't remember much of anything about it?Not so with this one. I would bet a lotta money that anyone who has read this book will never, ever forget it. It doesn't hurt that it's one of the best titles of all times, helping make the book unforgettable.How Mrs. Ryan triumphed and managed to support 10 kids and a weak, alcholic husband by winning jingle-writing contests will go down in literary history. And the book's not saccharine; it doesn't preach; and it doesn't damn. Others among us may damn the 50s, the Catholic church, Mr. Ryan...But Terry Ryan does not. Besides all those virtues, it's just very, very funny.

Inspiring

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.

A wonderful tribute to an incredible spirit.

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.