OUT OF STEP

“Bella,” Dr. Frankel interrupts me. “You can’t rush recovery. Try to take it one step at a time, alright? You seem like a strong girl — isn’t that right, Mom?” Mommy smiles weakly, but I know what she’s thinking: I’m strong until someone takes away my ballet shoes. Then I just become unbearable. Although, according to Atara, I’m pretty much always unbearable. Isn’t that fun? Life is simple and fun for ninth-grader Bella Rena. She has a great family and friends, and, of course, she has ballet. What more could she ask for? Then Bella sustains a serious injury, and suddenly life is no longer a smooth and uncomplicated pirouette in the park. First, there’s the struggle forBella to find her identity. Who is she if she can’t dance? And how can she ever truly be happy without her beloved and all-encompassing pastime? And then there’s her brother Naftali, who finds himself out of yeshivah and thus out of step as well…