Paige Michaels comes from the kind of wealth that few experience. The daughter of a notoriously successful banker who wielded great political power, she grew up in an extraordinary world peopled by the political leaders of tomorrow. Now one mistake rooted in her past is threatening to unravel her perfect life. After years as a stay-at-home mother living in New Jersey, Mollie Johnston convinces her husband, Paul, to move back to New York to fulfill her dream of living amid the bright lights. Mollie is uncomfortable in her own body and is always worried about how others perceive her and Paul. Once she sees how the other half lives, will she come to see herself and her marriage more clearly? Gwen McAndrews is the ultimate New York socialite and is the envy of those impressed by her grandeur, but is there more than meets the eye? In addition to Paige, Mollie, and Gwen, a cast of characters' stories are interwoven into the text - parents, children, caretakers, childhood friends, old lovers, and spouses. American Circumstance is a novel about appearance versus reality - how our lives and relationships appear to others versus how they are experienced, and the complex ways that social class shapes identity, relationships, and the codes of friendship. American Circumstance also provides a window into the replication of wealth, power, and privilege. The novel can be used as supplemental reading in courses across the disciplines that deal with gender, social class, inequality, power, family systems, relational communication, intimate relationships, identity, American culture, narrative or creative writing. It can also be read in book clubs or entirely for pleasure. American Circumstance is wonderful! The characters and story invite you into a world that is both familiar and unfamiliar. Highly recommended!! - Carl Leggo, Ph.D., University of British Columbia American Circumstance kept me up! I wanted to see how the characters' lives untangled. I loved how Leavy challenged my cultural assumptions. Students will have a lot to talk about as they discover the 'sociology of everyday life' embedded in the fiction. - Laurel Richardson, Ph.D., The Ohio State University The characters were so compelling that I couldn't stop reading ... a great beach read, or class text. - U. Melissa Anyiwo, Ph.D., Curry College Leavy writes in an engaging way that helps you ask important questions about class issues in America. This story keeps you interested and wondering why women make the choices they do. - Margaret A. Robbins, The Journal of Language & Literacy Education American Circumstance is one of my favorite texts to assign to my sociology students. - Cheryl Llewellyn, Ph.D., University of Massachusetts Lowell
