What do a conservative Christian dancer, a veiled Muslim woman, and an agnostic hippie have in common? It sounds like the beginning of a questionable joke, but in Dina Sleiman's “Dance From Deep Within” it's the premise for a well-choreographed story that will touch your emotions, challenge your perceptions, and leave you cheering for each of the three main characters at the end.

College students Layla, Allie, and Rain must fulfill a class assignment to learn about each other's cultures. As the girls begin to set aside their assumptions about each other based on external appearances and misguided perceptions, a genuine friendship develops between the three that will change each of them forever. 

No matter your own culture, or spiritual status, or lifestyle, or history, you'll find something in common with each of the main characters, and empathizing with them as they wind their way through relationships, family difficulties, and spiritual questions. As each young woman faces a personal crisis, they find comfort and help in their new friendships, and new ways of looking at each other, and at God.

Sleiman has successfully created believable, likeable characters who give an honest, emotional representation of their diverse backgrounds, and a storyline that will leave you wanting more. I've already requested sequels!