In today's polarized world, certain individuals are often talked about as "them" or "those people," pejorative terms to say the least. In ONE OF THEM, Kitty Zeldis takes that phrase, those words, and exposes the microaggressions, the ignorance and the prejudice behind it. The book's two main characters attend Vassar College. While they are Jewish and from wealthy families, their approach to life is very different.

Anne Bishop becomes part of a group of privileged WASP girls, taking tea with them and dishing tea, gossiping about fashion, other students and life. Her mother died when she was a baby, and she and her father are very close. He changed his name to Bishop when the law firm he wanted to join didn't show an interest in him, and he thought a non-Jewish last name might help his chances. His first name changed from Jacob to Jay. He has been very successful with his new moniker. Anne's first name is Miriam, but at Vassar she decides to go by her middle name after an unsettling event with her best friend during high school.

"[Anne and Delia's story is] inspiring and a testament to the importance of forgiveness and being true to one's self. Multifaceted protagonists, an intriguing plot and beautiful writing make this a novel not to miss."

Delia Goldhush, on the other hand, escaped Nazi Germany after the occupation of Paris with her father, who owned an art gallery. Her mother, an artist, disappeared right before they were to depart, so they had to go on the last boat leaving France without her. Her parents were more dedicated to and consumed by their social network, art and their gallery than they were with loving their daughter. Delia's sophisticated style, confidence and obvious intelligence draw Anne to her. They are starting to grow close until Anne participates in an event that drives a wedge into their budding friendship.

Zeldis' narrative is fluid and easy to read. The descriptions and the reflections, combined with just the right amount of dialogue, make this a book you won't want to put down. After all, we like these two women --- both of whom are perfectly imperfect --- and we want to know how they proceed in their journey. Anne and Delia are searching for something. Delia yearns for the mother she never really had. She thinks that if she can find the boxes of sculpture her mother left behind in Paris, she finally will be happy. Anne's father died when she was in high school, so she's on her own. But she was irrevocably changed by her short-lived relationship with Delia. She has feelings of shame for her part in what happened, and she misses the friendship that might have been.

The story takes us from Poughkeepsie, NY, to Paris, and even to the brand-new state of Israel. As Zeldis shares the unfortunate truth about the many microaggressions that Jewish people endured in the ’40s, it's clear that those same microaggressions are still happening. And the tensions between the Jewish settlers and the Arabs in what was Palestine and is now the state of Israel? Things are just as dire today as they were then. Anne's guide in Israel was Ahmed, and he told her that his family had lived in Palestine-now-Israel for three or four generations. He said that while many Jews had lived in Palestine, there were riots after the British conquered Syria, and most left. But "now they're back again. Grabbing the land. Trying to force us out." And the Arabs attack the Jews who then retaliate in what becomes a never-ending cycle. Sound familiar?

Later, the same guide tells Anne, "You Americans are so soft. Nothing bad has happened to you in a long time. But bad things have been happening to us longer than you've been alive." When she replies that bad things can happen to anyone, he says that bad things happen to some people "more than others." As Anne talks about the violence she witnessed at the kibbutz she visited, someone comments that "[n]othing is going to get settled for a long time." Such irony. Who could have imagined that the anger, the distrust and the hatred would continue for generations?

ONE OF THEM is not a happily-ever-after story. It's an incisive look at the post-WWII era, when antisemitism was rampant, and restrictions were in place in private country clubs, summer camps, subdivisions and the workplace. "Passing" was what some did to make life easier, and this is an insightful reveal of what that entails and how that might play out.

It would be wonderful to say that the world has changed, that religion no longer indicates the value of a person nor does the color of one's skin. But in reality, what Zeldis has done is to cause the reader to see the unfortunate truth that all too little has improved. The conflict in the Middle East is as bad as it ever was, and antisemitism and prejudice against those from other cultures is rampant in the US, as well as other parts of the world.

But none of that takes away from the beauty of Anne and Delia's story. It's inspiring and a testament to the importance of forgiveness and being true to one's self. Multifaceted protagonists, an intriguing plot and beautiful writing make this a novel not to miss.