A monumental American novel about one man’s rise from life as a penniless immigrant to the head of a family empire

In the tradition of great writers like Charles Dickens and John Steinbeck, John Jakes crafts a sweeping family drama. In late-nineteenth-century Chicago, the tragedies and triumphs of the Crowns illustrate the power of the American Dream. As immigrants to America, their turbulent story spans a decade marked by the vicious Pullman Strike, the birth of motion pictures, and the Spanish-American War. Against this backdrop of technological change, industrial-scale greed, and political corruption, the Crowns emerge a true dynasty and one of Jakes’s most fascinating families.

This ebook features an illustrated biography of John Jakes including rare images from the author’s personal collection.