George Kracha decides to move from Hungary to the U.S to look for green pasture. He boards a ship in Germany where he meets Zuska. In his journey, George spends almost every cent he has in partying with Zuska. Eventually, he reaches New York City broke. Kracha walks from New York to Pennsylvania to meet his only sister. In Pennsylvania, Kracha meets her together with Andrej. Kracha has three daughters, namely Mary, Anna, and Alice. Andrej gets him employment in railroads. Before long, Andrej and his wife start working in the steel mill. George and his wife follow them. Working in the mills is tedious.
Kracha decides to open his own business. He also starts dating Zuska. Soon after, Kracha’s wife dies. He spends a lot of money during the funeral. Zuska also starts stealing money from his shop. As a result, his business deteriorates. Eventually, he is compelled to close it due to the losses he has incurred. Following the closure of his business, Kracha starts working in the steel mill again. His daughter, Mary, gets married to Mike. However, Mike gets an accident at the steel mill and dies.
The story follows three generations. The main characters in the third generation are Mary and Mike’s children. In the third generation, Dobie is the protagonist. Readers get an insight into how the first generation and the third one are treated differently. That may be attributed to technology and the creation of unions. The book depicts how people go the extra mile in working under unfavorable conditions to provide for their families.
The book shows how immigrants in America suffers. Despite advanced technology, they continue experiencing hardships. Though Kracha’s grandchildren work in the mills at different times from him, they almost face the same challenges. Low pay and working under deplorable conditions are the order of the day in the mills. Poor working conditions leads to the loss of lives.
