The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio by Terry Ryan

"R" Author
2019 A to Z Challenge - "Z"

So we tweaked the A to Z Challenge on this one, as we didn't have any Z titled books in our library and to prevent having to buy a book to complete the Challenge, we allowed for X and Z (and maybe Y) to simply be in the title, anywhere in the title.

This was such a fun and enjoyable read and truly heartwarming to boot!  Interspersed within the family saga are many of Mrs. Ryan's contest entries, photos of the entry forms and family and publicity photos.

Summary from GoodReads: 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. Standing up to the church, her alcoholic husband, and antiquated ideas about women, Evelyn turned every financial challenge into an opportunity for innovation, all the while raising her six sons and four daughters with the belief that miracles are an everyday occurrence. Evelyn Ryan's story is told by her daughter Terry with an infectious joy that shows how a winning spirit and sense of humor can triumph over adversity every time.

Not only did Mrs. Ryan try to keep poverty at bay from her family of 10 children with her winning entries, but more importantly with her optimism, positivity and down right doggedness.  The book is as inspiring as it is entertaining.

And I enjoyed my own trip down memory lane of growing up in Ohio and experiencing blizzards and "tickle hills".