Life in Sweden seems like an endless winter for three sisters after
their mother’s death and father’s suicide. Elin feels the weight of
responsibility for her sisters’ welfare, and when circumstances become
unbearable, she writes to her relatives in Chicago, pleading for help.
Joining
sixteen million other immigrants who left their homelands for America
between 1890 and 1920, Elin, Kirsten, and Sofia begin the long,
difficult journey. Enduring the ocean voyage in steerage and detention
on Ellis Island, their story is America’s story. And in a journey
fraught with hardships, each woman will come to understand her secret
longings and the meaning of home.