Miss Allyne Haynes Marshall Petty (affectionately known as Mama Pet) continued the Southern tradition of passing her knowledge down from her generation of women to the next. Hers was good, practical advice on how to live with yourself and with others. Her daughter, author Marillyn Taylor Klam, wants to take this tradition one step further by dispersing this wit and wisdom not only to her own daughter, but to a much larger audience. With this purpose in mind, she has written her new book, My Mama Always Said . . . : A Book of Southernisms.
A true Southerner, Mrs. Klam was born in Jackson, Mississippi, and has lived most of her life in the small town of Monroe, Louisiana. In addition to the sage advice and good humor of Mama Pet, the author has an abundance of personal experience to draw upon as well. For more than 20 years, she wrote a column covering social, civic, and cultural events for the Sunday Morning World. Later, she worked for 10 more years in the same capacity for the Ouachita Citizen. She clearly has had her finger on the pulse of Southern living throughout her life.
Marillyn Taylor Klam takes us back to a more genteel way of thinking, where rules had good reasons and women wanted to be ladies. She presents a collection of quotes, biblical scriptures, and autobiographical accounts that are bound to bring tears to the eyes and smiles to the lips of readers.
A frequent traveler, Mrs. Klam still contributes articles on her travels or various social functions to her local newspaper. She has never forgotten the things her mama always said.