Seattle Green

Seattle of the 1860s is a muddy, rough-hewn town when Maddy, a plucky 15-year-old bookworm, arrives as Abel Blanchard's mail-order bride. Put off by Abel's expansionist creed, Maddy silently sides with his brother, Caleb, a man more tied to the land and the Indians than to his white neighbors. Her hoydenish daughter Catherine grows into a surprisingly proper Seattle matron, but maintains a streak of love for the land that even eclipses that for her family. Only Natalie, Catherine's youngest, escapes the green confines of Seattle to become an award-winning photojournalist in World War II before returning to defend her heritage against greedy relatives. Adams (Good Intentions takes the reader smoothly through the familiar paces of pain and passion in an enjoyable, though not very distinctive, family saga. (May 27)