'Sofka gazes ahead, with her family's future before her . . .'
Sofka Dorn, widowed matriarch of a prosperous German Jewish family
living in England, rules her four children with an exacting hand.
Frederick, the eldest son, is a disgracefully charming 'ladies' man, and
like his flirtatious sister, Betty, is adored and indulged by his
mother. Alfred and Mimi, both steady and solitary, are a disappointment
to Sofka, who values strength and boldness of spirit. But, as their
story unfolds, it becomes clear that the lives each must live and the
times each must endure will change them in ways even Sofka could never
have imagined.