Betty: A Memoir by Spencer, Iowa, author Mary McSwain Steele, is a daughterâs homage to a mother who raised three children in a backdrop of adversity and poverty.
Steele, former staff writer for the Spencer Daily Reporter, goes beyond personal memoir. With a novelistâs eye for detail, she evokes the sense of place of southwestern Wisconsin as few writers ever have, her description rivaling David Rhodesâ bestselling novel, Driftless.
After leaving her alcoholic husband, Arch Dale (Mac) McSwain Jr., Steeleâs mother, Betty Rosson McSwain, returned with her three children to the safety and comfort her parentsâ home in Readstown, Wisconsin.