The World of Franyo

Written episodically, accompanied by wonderful images and photos, "The World of Franyo," (which takes its name from the author's mother's art school nickname) is a deeply personal and, at times, shocking series of interconnected family stories that begin with Franyo's dramatic escape from Hitler Germany and follow her life as a great diva through the New York art scene of the 1960s to later years when she was swindled out of her fortune by an opportunistic scammer. Writer Nicole Jeffords does not shrink from down-and-dirty accounts of life's most difficult and dangerous moments, using the spine of her mother's story to cover such topics as marriage to a famous man who suffers from Munchausen's syndrome, the horrors of being a black-out drunk, the menace of family feuds, the power of deathbed vows, the sweetness of getting sober and having a second chance. These disturbing and revelatory stories make for a compelling read that will cause you to look at the fabled history of your own life through a new lens.