Abstract:
The Promise of America chronicles the tumultuous adventures of an Irish immigrant from his narrow escape from British tyranny to his marriage in 1895. Blessed with grit and good luck, William Fitzpatrick claws and sleeps his way to wealth and power, beginning as a Tammany Hall bagman the New York’s infamous Tenderloin. His assignation with the sensuous Molly Dunn leads to friendship with the Park Avenue Barneys; plain, passionate Anne and her gay husband Harvey.
His adventures include a rendezvous with quirky Scottish peers as the scene shifts across America in William’s quest to claim his share of America’s promise.