Lost love haunts many as they age, but ; in Staten Island Memoirs, Paris. Polanski creates a ficticious love affair with a beautiful face from the past; he cannot forget; Paris has led a full life that lacks only one thing - the love of a beautiful woman he met 43 years ago. The woman in question is the real life equivalent to Helen, the central character in the novel, modeled after the Greek Goddess Helen of Troy. The story opens with Paris Polanski in his home in Grant City, Staten Island. Not being able to find his long lost love, Paris creates a work of fiction in which he recreates his life by falling in love with, marrying and becoming part of Helen’s life, thus showing just how far one man's obsession will go to remove the sorrow of lost love. The story then goes back in time and continues Paris Polanski as a young man, secretly in love with a nameless, beautiful young woman. Shy and lacking self esteem, he is unable to express his feelings for her, and loses her to another man. After serving in the US Navy, Paris attends a New York City college and during one of his classes, he dreams of his ideal woman in the image and likeness of Helen of Troy. A year later, Paris sees the same young woman, Helen Jones, a student at Wilson College. She is smart, beautiful, and popular, and comes from a wealthy family. Paris on the other hand comes from a middle class family, dresses poorly, and is not blessed with the social graces; Engaged to a handsome young Ivy League attorney, Helen learns he has been cheating, and ends the relationship.
