Happy Fourth of July!

I remember when I was growing up how much I enjoyed celebrating the Fourth of July. The fireworks, wearing red, white, and blue, ice cream that was red, white, and blue, celebrations at camp, singing patriotic songs. Parades and flags. It was all so innocent. I was so innocent. In 2026 as we celebrate the 250^th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, I am no longer innocent, and the holiday is tinged with nostalgia, sadness, and gratitude.

People ask, “Are you proud to be an American?” But to me that’s the wrong question. It’s not about pride; it’s about gratitude.

I am grateful that 250 years ago some very wise and courageous people decided that it was worth risking their lives to free themselves from the tyranny of King George III. When they wrote, “All men are created equal,” it did not reflect the reality of our society, but it was a message to the king that he, like the rest of us, was a mere mortal and not a superior being entitled to deprive others of their rights. Those brave people saw a vision that was radical and frightening—and they put their lives and the lives of their neighbors and families on the line to stand up for that vision. So I am grateful to them all—-Jefferson, Adams, Hamilton, Hancock, Washington, and all those who stood with them.

And I am grateful personally to all my ancestors who also were wise and courageous enough to recognize the potential America held for them and left their homes in Europe to find a better life with more freedom, less antisemitism, more opportunities. All my novels were inspired in part by those brave immigrant ancestors of mine. In Pacific Street, it’s the story of my fifteen year old grandfather who walked out of Romania to escape oppression and pogroms. In Santa Fe Love Song, it’s the story of my great-great-grandfather who came as a teenager to America and traveled the Santa Fe Trail to find economic freedom and opportunity. In Simon’s Secret, Simon came to America as the place to start over after being imprisoned for years in Germany. And in The Women Before Us, there are the stories of my great-great-grandparents Hava and Gerson and my three-times great-grandparents Joshua and Jette, all of whom left everything they knew and all their relatives to come to this country when it was still fairly new in the 1840s and 1850s so that they could create better lives for themselves and their children.

I am thus deeply grateful to and proud of those who created this country back 250 years ago and deeply grateful to and proud of my ancestors who came here to reap its benefits. I am grateful that this country exists, and I have faith that it will return to its founding principles and provide sanctuary and hope for all people looking for a better life.