Commitment: Julie Ellis

Born into the family of a wealthy Jewish businessman, Carol's privileged world falls apart when her father shoots himself as the stock market of 1929 crashes. Hardly more than a child, she has to take a menial job but she has an ambition to become an architect. In the days of the Great Depression, her aspirations are quashed by the battle to survive. An offer of marriage seems to be a dream come true - but is the beginning of a nightmare. Carol must endure the tragedies of the Second World War and the McCarthy witch hunts to realise her ambition without betraying her heritage.