Writing as part of a team requires a level of patience, communication and trust that most people can’t even achieve in their marriages. The two authors must share the same vision and work together to bring it to fruition. The fact that Kimberly Jones and Gilly Segal have managed to do this not once, but twice, is a feat of epic proportions.

Their latest offering, Why We Fly, showcases those skills in the very themes of the book. The narrative is told in dual point of view, alternating between Chanel Irons and Eleanor Green, best friends that compete on the same high school cheer leading squad. While Eleanor is struggling to make a comeback after suffering from several debilitating concussions, a condition that will be with her for the rest of her life, Chanel is hyper focused. Her own internal demands for perfection lead to anxiety and isolation from the rest of the cheerleaders.

When the cheer squad decides to take a knee during the national anthem in support of an alumna things take a turn. The moment is charged and joyous – my heart almost exploded when the Jewish Student Union and Gay Straight Alliance both joined the protest – but left alone it would have been the stuff of saccharine morality tales. It is in the aftermath of this event that we see the true power of a shared narrative. Both girls must necessarily go on very different journeys and through them Jones and Segal show us the many forms of discrimination that high school athletes and activists face.

Chanel and Eleanor jumped in without a plan, and it shows. However, in true to life fashion, the repercussions hit the minority students disproportionately. The two girls, who have always shared everything with each other, are suddenly pushed apart by forces outside themselves. They must each find the strength to understand and fight the forces that would silence them.

For Eleanor, this means truly listening to those around her. There are several moving scenes with her Rabbi in which we are reminded, as Jews, that our job is not to rest on the laurels of previous generations but to actively take part in supporting our marginalized peers. That true leadership often takes the form of asking someone else what they need.

Chanel, on the other hand, forms a strong relationship with another student that has prior experience with advocacy. Together with Chanel’s older sister they show her that perfection is not necessary or even desirable. That she can’t try and be everything to everyone all the time. Combined with her experience at the legacy weekend for her mothers sorority, Chanel discovers how important mentorship is for minority students seeking to perform advocacy work.

The book resists the urge to give us a happily ever after with a neatly tied bow. The girls relationship is forever changed. Life is messy. So is this book. In the best possible way. Because it is written by two authors who know how to listen to each other. If only we could all learn to do the same.

*BookishlyJewish received an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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E Broderick is a writer and speculative fiction enthusiast. When not writing she enjoys epic games of trivial pursuit and baking. She currently lives in the U.S. but is eagerly awaiting the day a sentient spaceship offers to take her traveling around the galaxy.