An authentic Dutch Jewish family history, beginning with Nathaniel Van Meer in the Amsterdam of 1770 and tells of the family traditions, rules and rituals together with their German counterpart, Meyer. In Hamburg, in 1903, twelve-year-old Nathaniel III who is born in Tsarist Russia. tells the story of his grandmother and her cousin and finally, the sale of Grandmother's estate as a preliminary to Nathaniel III's departure to America in 1906 with his parents and sisters. As the narrative continues, the family characteristics of the sea, merchant shipping or scholarship are carefully traced. Time and again, it seems that when the family rules are followed, all goes well; but when the pattern is broken sorrow and even disaster follow. Covering almost all of Europe and illuminating the social history of the times, the Van Meer family makes fascinating reading.