This is Chaim Potok's seventh novel. Ilana Davita Chandler is the young daughter of communist parents growing up in pre-World War II New York. Her father is a reporter who travels around the world writing about strikes. Her mother is also a scholar in her own right and supports the cause from home. Through tragedy and her family's mysterious history, Ilana discovers the Jewish faith and seeks out comfort from the harsh reality that surrounds her through its rituals and community.