Unless you happen to have cloned yourself several thousand times, chances are that the people you share your city, street and even your own home with – are slightly different or perhaps even dramatically different from you.

Where does “me” stop and “other” begin? Where do we draw our invisible lines? That kind of person vs. my type? Religious vs. secular? Mainstream vs. special needs? And most importantly, can we enjoy a peaceful coexistence despite it all?

Moving Targets is a suspense novel that swings wide as it tackles these issues from several directions. At the center of the action is Motke Shechory, the kibbutz old-timer who was purportedly abandoned by his religious parents and abandoned yiddishkeit in return. After WWII ends, Motke’s parents and siblings seeks refuge in the United States, only to encounter bias and struggles as they trip over America’s ‘invisible lines.’

Motke is ready to fight to the bitter end to stop the Chareidim from invading and building a new housing development in his neck of the woods. Yet, he’s also ready to battle on behalf of his precious granddaughter Keren who has Down’s Syndrome and is rejected by the kibbutz leaders as unworthy of kibbutz membership. Why does he fight for Keren but against the anonymous black-hatters? Because Keren, whose name means sunbeam, melts his heart. She’s a part of him and his future, whereas the Chareidim are the past, “other” and the enemy.

With Alon, an evil-hearted rabble-rouser at their helm and Zohar, a mentally-unstable young man as their lackey, the kibbutznikim and the environmental activists seem to have the upper hand – until Rav Erlicher wisely sends a group of frum families led by avreich-Project Manager Zev Litwein to settle in the old, secular neighborhood of Talmei-Charish while the new frum one is being built. What could more powerful than Torah, friendship and chesed to soothe regional wounds? Unless an arsonist or a criminal with a cache of weapons gets to them first…

Guest Blogger: Sara Miriam Gross

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This entry was posted on Sunday, March 15th, 2015 at 10:00 am and is filed under General, New Books. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.