One of Them by Kitty Zeldis ~ a Review

by Susan Roberts

A story of secrets, friendship, and betrayal about two young women at Vassar in the years after World War II, a powerful and moving tale of prejudice and pride that echoes the cultural and social issues of today.

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September 2025; Harper; 978-0063352841
audio, ebook, print (352 pages); historical fiction

One of Them takes place in the United States after WWII and highlights the anti-Semitism that continued to exist after the war.    It highlights the lives of two girls beginning at Vassar College: Anne Bishop, who was Jewish but hid it from her college friends, and Delia, who was discriminated against at college because she was Jewish.  

Anne was a typical Vassar student who hung out with her WASP friends on campus.  She was Jewish but had been discriminated against in high school, so she changed her name from Miriam to Anne and never told anyone that she was Jewish.  Her group of college friends never accepted Delia because she was 'one of them' and made constant remarks about her. Ann became fascinated with Delia and met her several times off campus -- meeting on campus would be social suicide.  They are becoming friends when an act of betrayal ends their friendship in a heartbreaking manner.

Anne and Delia were both Jewish but had totally different upbringings.  Anne grew up in New York with a loving father and an extended family.  Her father was a successful lawyer who died right before she started college.  She didn't hide being Jewish in high school, but when she was discriminated against, she decided not to tell anyone she was Jewish when she started at Vassar.  Delia grew up in Paris, where both of her parents were part of the art scene -- her mother was an artist and her dad owned a very prestigious gallery.  She and her father escaped Paris after Germany invaded, but her mother disappeared and didn't move to America with them.  She would love to get back to Paris to find her mother's sculptures and find out what happened to her.

Anne and Delia go their separate ways -- Anne feeling very guilty and Delia very adamant that the friendship was over.  Their lives in the next few years take them to Paris and Palestine before they both end up back in the US.  Their relationship has its ups and downs, with Anne wanting to renew their friendship and Delia wanting to avoid Anne at all costs.  Will they be able to re-establish the friendship that started all of those years ago at college?

This book is the story of friendship and family, but it also highlights the anti-Semitism that existed in the United States after the war.   Delia was not accepted into college strictly because she was Jewish, and Anne felt that hiding her true self would make her more acceptable.  This is a story about friendship and love, differences and acceptance, and finding your place in the world where you can be happy and true to yourself while accepting other people who are different.  This was a well-written and thought-provoking novel that continues to echo in our current society.  

Buy One of Them at Amazon

Susan Roberts grew up in Michigan but loves the laid-back life at her home in the Piedmont area of North Carolina where she is three hours from the beach to the east and the mountains in the west.  She reads almost anything but her favorite genres are Southern Fiction and Historical Fiction.   

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