Lucy, and their five young children, take ship by night from Ireland under
threat of attack by German submarines. A week later the Gladishes arrive
safely on American shores, but with nothing except what is packed in their
few suitcases. They have no home, no money, no assets, and Victor has no job.
It is a desperate situation.
The fourth daughter, Naomi, not quite five at the time of the family’s
arrival in the U.S., writes that she didn’t realize what was really happening
then, or even in later years. It was not until she discovered two boxes of letters
in clearing out her parents’ things that she came to realize the extent of poverty,
illness and struggle that beset her family.
For 20 crucial years Victor kept copies of letters that he wrote, and letters
that he received from others. In reading all these letters Naomi for the first
time came to understand her father as a man. They inspired her to tell his often
painful yet very human story.
Naomi expresses a loving daughter’s natural concern for her father
and what happened to him, but she doesn’t minimize his shortcomings.
Throughout most of the book she takes a fair-minded approach, trying to
understand both sides of each situation against its historical background.
She uses a conversational style, asking questions and speculating on people’s
motivations and actions, seeking answers rather than making definitive
statements. However, there is a place where this seems to break dow