Preview of The Waterworks Summary:

Doctorow's novel reads more like a mystery novel than any of his earlier works. The action takes place in New York City not long after the Civil War, but the events are recalled by a narrator/character several years later. New York in the 1870s is portrayed as a city in the grip of sinister forces: the political machine of Boss Tweed, the selfish greed of robber baron capitalists...