Forty years later , Joel and Audrey live together in Greenwich Village . Joel is now famous , successful , and controversial for his radical legal activism . Audrey has become a fiery , antagonistic woman who finds fault in all things and defends her husband 's causes with zealous conviction . Joel and Audrey have three adult children living elsewhere in New York City . Lenny , the eldest , was adopted at age seven as part of Joel 's belief in collective , " tribal " child-rearing . Lenny 's parents were eco-terrorists , with their last campaign killing his biological father and landing his biological mother in jail . Since then , Joel has grown frustrated with Lenny 's addiction issues and repeated petty crimes , while Audrey dotes on Lenny and constantly excuses his delinquency . Karla , the middle child , is a hospital social worker . Karla struggles with low self-esteem after years of demeaning treatment from her family about her weight and intelligence . Karla is unhappily married to Mike , a union organizer , who desperately wants children . Rosa , the youngest , chaperones an after-school program for underprivileged girls . Once a firm socialist , Rosa tried to join the socialist revolution in Cuba but returned disillusioned after four years of witnessing Fidel Castro 's oppression . However , by the time she is introduced , Rosa has had a positive experience in a synagogue and discovered an interest in Orthodox Judaism . While defending an Arab American man against terrorism charges in the wake of the September 11 attacks , Joel has a stroke and enters a coma . At the hospital , Audrey lashes out at the doctors , causing a fight with Rosa that ends with Audrey kicking Rosa from the hospital . Audrey 's long-suffering confidant , Jean , tries to help distract her by taking her to activist social functions , but Audrey is offended at the activists ' lack of concern for Joel and preoccupation with public figures . Audrey receives a letter from a woman named Berenice Mason , who claims to be Joel 's lover and the mother of his illegitimate child . Audrey dismisses the claim
September 11 attacks
September 11 attacks
The Believers (novel)