My Basmati Bat Mitzvah

Tara Feinstein is Jewish-Indian-American, an identity that she struggles with.  As she attends Hebrew school and her parents plan for her bat mitzvah, Tara tries to determine who she really is.  She embraces parts of both sides of her family.  

Tara is also a typical middle school student, struggling with friendships, and trying to determine if her best friend, Ben-o, is really more than a friend.  As she prepares for her bat mitzvah, ruins a beautiful Indian sari that has been handed down for generations, and works on a robotics project with a new partner, Tara has a lot of things to deal with.

Tara is a tween that readers will relate to.  Freedman has managed to create a very human protagonist that is easy to relate to and that represents well the feelings that go with this age group.

As I was reading My Basmati Bat Mitzvah, I couldn't help but think of two other tween titles that also deal with a character trying to find out who they really are: