Publisher's Synopsis
Following on the heels of her angry separation and divorce; her bittersweet return to California from Kansas; her near-failed attempts to provide for her two sons; and her resolution to never speak - or hear - the name of her ex again; A Circle of Elephants follows the life of Charlotte Albert Ash Fels, her new husband, Eugene, her children, and their extended family as they build new lives together in Los Angeles. Although A Circle of Elephants continues Charlotte's fictionalized story, a segment of whose life was chronicled in The Queen of Kansas, this volume expands the focus and explores the lives of other family members as well. A Circle of Elephants takes place in LA between 1948 and 1956. These post-war years were times of enormous social, physical and political change and the Fels' family are beneficiaries and victims. Through Charlotte and Eugene and their extended families, A Circle of Elephants brings to life topics including organized crime, marriage and family, the rush to the suburbs, Hollywood, anti-Communism, health gurus, religion, race relations, the garment industry, and much more. Poignant and humorous - fictional and historically accurate, A Circle of Elephants is a heart-felt exploration of one family's efforts to make their collective lives work.
