Liberty

Timed to coincide with the centennial of the Statue of Liberty, this novel concerns three immigrant families in New York in 1881. Marcel Danziger, who suffered an injury while working on Lady Liberty in France, lives with his wife, Gabrielle, and his brother Gebhart. Gabrielle takes care of her disabled husband, works, studies English and fights the romantic feelings she has for brother-in-law Gebhart. Simone Zeller, also French, comes to America, where she deserts her parents and becomes a rich man's mistress, paying a high price to be kept in style. General Savarin smuggles his family out of Russia; no longer the spoiled aristocrat, he learns to support his family American-style, by work. Each story brings a touch of nostalgia to the era. (May)