Many thanks to Amulet Books via NetGalley for an opportunity to read and review this book. I will definitely be keeping this author on my radar. And of course, the worries that Tara has about not knowing whether she believes in God or not, as she prepares for her Bat Mitzvah. Freedman managed to weave in serious elements to the story, such as a friend who shoplifts and who has trichotillomania (obsessive hair-pulling). Freedman (Goodreads Author) 3.72 avg rating 720 ratings. Freedman to write a sequel, because I want to see what Tara is like as she grows older!! She was such an interesting protagonist. A list of books with both Jewish and Indian (and Jewish-Indian) themes. It felt like a nice touch, but it wasn’t an overwhelming focus of the book or anything. Amid all this drama, Tara considers how to balance her Indian and Jewish identities and what it means to have a bat mitzvah while questioning her faith. I also liked the little blossom of romance between Tara and her best friend, Ben-O (Benjamin). I also have to say that the author nailed what being a 12-year-old girl is like it’s been awhile since I was that age, but two years ago I worked with a group of 6th graders and Tara seemed almost exactly like some of the girls in that group, in a good way. Freedman did an excellent job showing us how Tara felt in a myriad of different situations involving the mix of the two. Originally I picked it up because I was curious to read about what it would be like for a young girl to embrace both her heritage as an Indian-American and her religion as a Jew, and I feel that Ms.
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