First Immigrant: "I have a relative in America."

Second Immigrant: "Everybody has a relative in America."

In Homeland (1993), once again John Jakes's meticulous research and his dedication to making history come alive is apparent. He manages to control a staggering amount of material and keeps it "lively and interesting." In addition to reaching new heights of "famous-name dropping," Jakes infuses his novel with hope and optimism as he sets the stage for another entry in the Crown Family Chronicles.

Jakes is interested in the turn-of-thecentury assimilation of Europeans into American society and culture because it is a part of his own family history.

He has dedicated Homeland to his maternal grandfather, William Carl Retz (1849-1936), who emigrated from Germany in 1870 and lived in Ohio and Indiana in German settlements. Jakes attributes his writing skill to this grandfather who loved to tell stories.

Some of the episodes involving fictional...