Cissy Houston has written her life story, but she says people would rather hear about her famous daughter. "Everybody wamts to know about Whitney," she said Wednesday, settling into a soft couch in her suite at the Four Seasons hotel. "It's to be expected." The 64-year-old matriarch of the Houston family is no fool. In her new book, How Sweet the Sound: My Life with GOD and Gospel (Doubleday, $22.95), she talks of how her faith has guided her, of how her singing career has shaped her and of the sad deaths of her parents. She even briefly mentions Elvis Presley, whom she sang with in Las Vegas. "Elvis was gorgeous, drop dead gorgeous." Her now ex-husband, John Houston, "used to call him Elvis Pretzel."

Being away from her three kids(Whitney, Gary and Michael) while singing was hard, and Cissy says her daughter faces the same problem 5-year-old daughter Bobbi Kristina, along with the problems of fame. "If (Whitney) sneezes the wrong way, it's in the tabloids. It's horrible. It hurts adults, but it's the children who really get hurt." When asked about the latest rumor-that Whitney is on drugs-she replies: "Are you kidding me?" She makes a fist like she's going to punch someone. "She's fine." Then she says "For 12 years Whitney was constantly doing touring, recording and touring. She was just tired, and she wanted to take a rest. And she has problems like normal people. They're just normal people. You have to realize that."

As for whether her daigher's marriage to singer Bobby Brown, which has been volatile, will last, Houston says, "Who knows? I think they love one another."