Dreaming of America: A Journey of Betrayal

Based on a true story.Dreaming of America covers the lives of the Fielden family from 1900 to 1914 on both sides of the Atlantic. In 1905 Clara left her husband Walter in Accrington Lancashire. She sailed off to Philadelphia in America with her lover George taking her 5 year old daughter with them. She left behind another seven children aged 7 to 21.Clara and George made themselves a new life over in America and by 1914 another five of her children had made their way over there. They went to America for different reasons and not always because Clara was there. For some of them it was very difficult for them to forgive her for what she had done. Of the two left behind only one May kept in touch with her brothers and sisters. Clara and Walters descendents are now scattered over various American states Lancashire and Yorkshire in England and Australia. A lot of them are in touch with each other.A story such as this raises a lot of questions. Why did she go? Did she ever regret it? How did Jenny cope with being an only child in a strange country? What happened to the family left behind? Censuses and ships manifests are limited in the facts they can provide and the pictures they bring to mind lack the clear detail for us to try and understand.Dreaming of America puts flesh on the dry bones provided by historical records. It becomes a story to read and enjoy maybe even an explanation of those events over a hundred years ago.