A Father's Dream Through a Daughter's Eyes

About the Book

Abel Phillips had a dream. He was going to raise perfect children, to make sure he would not make the same mistakes his immigrant parents made while adjusting to life in a world so different from the one they left behind. At the same time, under his watchful eye, he hoped to realize in his children the ideals of his mother: education and unblemished morality. With a wife whom he adored, they would raise a wonderful family. This is the story of what he accomplished and hoped to pass on before he died. The book speaks of how the immigrant experience affected the way Abel and Celia, of the second generation, raised their children; first in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, home of the giant Bethlehem Steel Co., and later in the Pennsylvania Dutch city of Allentown. By contrast with their own family, the new one grew up protected and free to enjoy all the pleasures of childhood in the cocoon of their parents’ love. This is a warm tale full of family adventures, in the context of the history of early Pennsylvania and of the two World Wars.

About the Author

Helene Herzig, Mount Holyoke College graduate, moved from Allentown, Pennsylvania to marry a young man from Long Island and raise a family of three. Her writing career included Feature Editor for North Shore Magazine, articles for The Christian Science Monitor and other newspapers and a published book, Legendary Long Islanders.