Rose Zimmer

Rose Zimmer is the mother of Miriam, mother-in-law of Tommy, grandmother of Sergius, aunt of Lenny, ex-wife of Albert, and something of a mother figure to Cicero. Rose is a Jewish Polish immigrant to America, having left Europe in the dark days of the1930s. Strong-willed and obsessed with Communism, Rose has little time for anything else in her life. Even her marriage to Albert and her romantic relationship with Douglas, as well as her relationship with her daughter, come second to Communism. Everything in life Rose does or sees is through the lens of Communism including Miriam’s nursery rhymes and storybooks. Rose refuses to accept that Communism can never manifest itself in America, and refuses to see how the country changes –especially through the 1980s. As a result, her selfishness and die-hard Communist activism drive away her family, leading her to die essentially alone –though...