The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio

 A memoir by Terry Ryan about his mother.

I really enjoyed this book.  I could relate to her love of wordplay, especially her pithy little rhyming poems.  There were several that I  wished I had written.  I also enjoyed the contesting part of it, as I grew up with a grandpa whose hobby was entering sweepstakes.  He had many of the same strategies, and we often received as gifts some of the random things he had won. He always told us, "You can't win if you don't enter", and I think Evelyn Ryan would have agreed. I also appreciated her optimism, the way she could put a positive spin on just about anything. Above all, the miraculous timing of some of her wins made you believe that the Lord was really looking out for her and her family.  Recommended for ages 12+

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