Avis O'Bryan

Miss Perris Valley Avis O'Bryan

If you loved Marlayna Glynn's best-selling memoir OVERLAY, her mother's story, MISS PERRIS VALLEY is a must-read! Marlayna Glynn is in her comfort zone in the memoir genre. Her previous works covered her own challenging childhood in 1970's Las Vegas. In this effort, Marlayna takes on the subject of her own mother. This in many ways brings closure for the reader (and possibly the author), on the reasons for the author's neglected upbringing. If you want a novel with a nice and tidy happy ending, this isn't for you. If you want a memoir that deals with issues of alcoholism, abuse, emotional isolation, and neglect head on and in a meaningful way, this is a tremendous effort. There has not been a writer who has dealt so eloquently with such themes since Frank McCourt or possibly Jeannette Walls.-John Lennon Avis knew one thing... She wanted to be a good mother. At least a better mother than her own had been. Could she be the exception in her family? She traded Romoland for Modesto, married young, and started a family. Checking the boxes didn't a happy marriage make. Before her children were a few years old, she already knew she'd made a mistake. There was something about men. And the city. And glitz. And glamor. She knew she had to get away. Hollywood. Vegas. Cocktails. Movie stars. Surely being a two-time beauty contest winner would pave the way to happiness. Wasn't this what the 1950s preached? But something didn't add up. The 1950s didn't deliver. You'll love this tragedy with a twist, because everyone loves a broken woman trying to do what's right. Get it now.