All Mixed Up

by Raj Tawney

New York Times essayist, Raj Tawney, delivers a gripping story of a multi-ethnic American boy who forges a complex friendship with a Pakistani immigrant in the wake of 9/11. It's 2002––less than one year after the September 11th attacks–– and sixth-grader Kamal Rao is tackling a brave new world of challenges, including figuring out who he really is and how he fits in. Even with New York City in its backyard, the suburban town where he lives is anything but open-minded. That means Kamal – frequently picked on and feeling ostracized -- usually spends his time alone, making mud pies in the backyard or cooking recipes with his mom and grandma from his family’s three cultures. Then, one day, a Pakistani immigrant named Jaz arrives at school, entering Kamal’s life and challenging his sluggish movement through the world. As the two boys forge a friendship over their love of exploring the outdoors and eating good food, the newcomer begins to show Kamal how being "different" isn’t a bad thing at all. For the first time, a fire is lit within Kamal – but what will happen when questions of Jaz's origins and his intentions begin to come into question at school and in their town? Will Kamal–– now on the cusp of discovering who he really is and who he wants to be –– risk his own safety and his family’s trust help his new friend, someone he barely knows at all? Based on the author’s personal life experiences, an insightful middle-grade novel from a fresh voice in children’s fiction that will be felt long after the last page.

Genres: Fiction

160 pages, Hardcover

Published November 26, 2024

About the author

Raj Tawney is an author, journalist, and essayist whose work largely reflects his multiracial American upbringing. Born in New York to an Indian, Puerto Rican, and Italian American family, Tawney has explored his identity and family history through personal essays published in The New York Times, The Washington Post, USA Today, San Francisco Chronicle, and other outlets throughout the country. His debut memoir, Colorful Palate: A Flavorful Journey Through a Mixed American Experience (Empire State Editions/Fordham University Press, 2023), earned critical acclaim and won numerous awards. His Middle Grade novel, All Mixed Up (Paw Prints Publishing/Baker & Taylor, 2024), was a NYPL Best Book for Kids pick and a Día Reading List pick, among other accolades. He currently resides in South Florida.

Reviews

[book_loversdreams Betty · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heartfelt Journey of Identity, Empathy, and Hope

Raj Tawney's All Mixed Up is more than just a coming-of-age story—it's a love letter to children who live between worlds, and a call to protect their natural capacity for love and understanding. Set in the tense aftermath of 9/11, the novel follows Kamal Rao, a sixth-grader of Indian, Puerto Rican, and Italian heritage, as he navigates what it means to be “mixed” in a society that often demands neat labels. When Jaz, a Pakistani immigrant, arrives at Kamal’s school, the two form an unlikely friendship rooted in shared feelings of otherness and curiosity about each other’s backgrounds.

What makes All Mixed Up so personal and powerful is the lived experience behind it. Tawney draws from his own childhood—he has spoken candidly about being a kindergartener who dreamed of becoming a journalist, someone who wanted to understand the world through stories, not assumptions. That early desire to explore truth and tell it plainly echoes through the pages of this novel. Kamal, like Tawney, is a quiet observer with a deep well of empathy. His longing to be understood and his instinct to connect with others are a reflection of Tawney’s own youthful curiosity and compassion.

The book is layered with a message that feels especially urgent today: that children are born with an open heart and a natural love for others, regardless of culture or background. Tawney clearly believes that this openness should be nurtured, not hardened by the prejudices adults too often pass down. Through Kamal and Jaz’s friendship, All Mixed Up encourages young readers to question stereotypes, embrace their full identities, and resist the fear and division they might encounter in the adult world.

Tawney doesn’t shy away from the hard stuff—Islamophobia, bullying, and cultural misunderstanding are all part of the narrative—but he handles these themes with a light and honest touch, never lecturing, always guiding. His writing respects young readers' intelligence and emotional depth.

In the end, All Mixed Up is both a mirror and a window: a mirror for children who have ever felt torn between cultures, and a window for those who want to understand them. It's also a quiet but powerful plea to let children hold on to their natural empathy, curiosity, and kindness in a world that too often tries to teach them otherwise.

This is a deeply personal, beautifully told story—and one that deserves a place in every classroom and home. This book is for young audiences and beyond.

This book is a must read and as you can tell one I will always keep in my own library to read and share with others. A true 5 star read and highly recommended by this reader.

~Betty Cohen~

[Wade · Rating 5 out of 5]

We need more books like this for so many reasons. All Mixed Up captures the angst and school challenges that are common in middle school literature, but rises above other titles in its field in the way that it tackles tough subjects like prejudice and self-acceptance. The dynamic between reserved Kamal and the charismatic Jaz create several funny and heartfelt scenes. Tawney’s book is a brisk 160 pages, making it an easy recommendation for either avid or reluctant readers.
A moving read that delivers several important messages for the times we are living in.

[Annie Oosterwyk · Rating 4 out of 5]

Middle grade story about immigration, past and present, families, and friendship.

[Sara Neufeld · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had the good fortune of attending a party where early copies of this book were for sale, and I previewed it for my tween son. It is such a heartfelt and engaging story that hits so many important themes for middle schoolers (and all of us), surrounding racism, immigration, fitting in, and the power of one real friend. Very highly recommend.

[Leah · Rating 5 out of 5]

All is Mixed Up is a great book for middle school students. Kamal is a complex character who I instantly rooted for. I could see myself using this book in my classroom to discuss story conflict, characterization, and other literary elements.

[Kirin · Rating 3 out of 5]

The premise of this slightly biographical middle grade book is that of a very multicultural boy, Kamal, finding his voice, with the help of a Pakistani Muslim friend, Jaz, a year after the 9/11 attacks.  It brings in themes of Islamophobia, terrorism, bullying, friendship, alcoholism, immigration, refugees, "legal" and "illegal" citizens, Pakistan and India's partition, and growing up and feeling alone over 208 pages.  The writing style seems deliberately loose in touching on very complex themes, but not preaching on them, and instead letting the reader draw on their own thoughts and experiences to form their own opinions. It is debatable if enough information is even provider for the reader to ruminate on the themes, or care to, or feel enough of a connection to the characters to want to know how all the dots connect, but none-none-the less it seems to have been done with intent, and with the middle grade POV for some it might get away with key information and the resolution going unexplored.  For me though, honesty I just couldn't get past one line, one line tossed out with no explanation, no arc, no real purpose, never revisited even, at 16% it says "Allah is stupid."  Yes, I debated tying the phrase out.  I don't know why it has this line, it has no real impact on the story and could have easily been replaced for another reason Jaz received a purple nurple from a bully in Pakistan.  Later in the book there is a scene where Jaz has brought a prayer rug to school, he states he doesn't always pray, but clearly he does practice Islam, not just maintain the label in name only.  I am not saying that the scene is not based on the author's real life, or that people don't say stuff of this nature, but it is hard to read in black in white in a book with no discussion.  I don't know what the author's intent was in including it, but I think it is a disservice to so many of the themes in the book and does not serve the target audience as a mirror, or a respectable takeaway either. For this one line, I truly don't feel like I could have this book on my shelf, which is unfortunate.

SYNOPSIS:

Kamal Rao is half Indian, a quarter Puerto Rican, and a quarter Italian living in New York, he is relentlessly bullied at school, has no friends anywhere, and is dealing with a father that drinks a little too much most nights since he lost his job.  When a new boy, Jaz shows up at school, that can pronounce his name, a friend just might be what Kamal needs to find his voice, confidence, and place in the world.  Except Jaz has his own issues, and remains pretty mysterious about his past, his home life, even his name.  When a Halloween terrorist attack occurs, Jaz makes a run for it and Kamal has to decide what his friendship means.

WHY I LIKE IT:

I really can't decide if I like the writing style or not. I recognize that to stay on a middle grade point of view the banter between Kamala and Jaz is often done when it is just the two of them in a scene, making sense of a world they might not know much about. Unfortunately, that also means a lot of erroneous statements, perspectives, and facts get unchecked, and possibly perpetuated.  It also means that at times the boys seem really worldly and competent: riding across town on their bikes, living pretty independently, but also being really naive about being a brown Muslim kid waving around a gun in public, even if it is pretend.  The inconsistencies often are in relation to Islam, so they particularly stood out to me, for example Kamal knows what a hijab is, but not that Muslim's pray five times a day.  I think when a book is OWN voice and based on lived experiences, but so much of the plot pivots around someone who is so different from you, some of the details just seem inauthentic.  Admittedly, I was turned off early by that one statement, and I am not the target audience, but it was hard to relate to Jaz because it seemed so forcefully trying to present him in an almost performative way. A place of love no doubt, but overly polished to make the reader accept him and feel a kinship to him as Kamal did.

FLAGS:

Halloween, lying, terrorism, bullying, abuse, alcohol, sneaking

TOOLS FOR LEADING THE DISCUSSION:

I cannot encourage this to be on an Islamic school library or classroom shelf. That line even with discussion can't really be explained, there is no point to it.  I'd like to assume that as a child he was frustrated with life and was lashing out in fear or grief or desperation even, but there is nothing in the text that would support or suggest that, it is just there.  I read an electronic ARC, and I hope that the line has been removed in the final copy.

[Sharlene Shazzy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I feel like there was a lot to this book that wasn’t cohesive or resolved. The story felt very incomplete at the end just because so much was left unexplained. There are some very big ideas explored in this book - racism and prejudice, “legal” and “illegal” immigration, feeling like you’re too X for the Y crowd and too Y for the X crowd, bullying, but also the dad seems to have a drinking problem because he can’t find a job. I think the author tried to pack too much in. I also didn’t appreciate the early plot point where the boys are flipping through the lingerie section of a department store magazine, which was not necessary for the story and not necessary for a middle-grade book. It also struck me when the author described the principal’s appearance as “pretty” with a boxy black suit and glasses. It feels very out of place given the lengths that the author goes to to describe how other people look in this story. In fact, now that I’m reflecting on it, most of the value communicated about the women in this book comes from their looks or being housewives, unless I missed something while reading. That’s unfortunate.

[Josh Campeau · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a historical fiction book set in 2002. It focuses on a multiracial boy named Kamal who befriends a new kid at school Jaz. The book does a good job of showing the boys friendship and navigates serious topics well with themes of islamophobia, United States citizenship, racism, and racial profiling present. It has a lot of great representation and does a good job showing how our differences shouldn't divide us so much through our multiethnic and multiracial main character. I struggle with recommending it though because a lot of the kids I work with at my job want more uplifting books. This one had moments of levity and fun, but was overall quite serious.

[Winston · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book and I thought, I would love to be friends with this author. His characters are informed by his own childhood and so when they reflect my experiences as a outcast in grade school, I understand that we grew up in the same way. Being different is cool as an adult but as a school kid, it's often a target of bullying and feelings of abandonment and being out of place which can be hard!

I loved reading about these characters. Hopefully kids who read this learn that they aren't less than any one else just because they look different, eat different, or think different than their peers.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

My 6th grader loved this book! We read it together, which led to many discussions. I think it will be our favorite read of this school year!

All Mixed Up is a middle-grade novel, set post 9-11, that is a heartwarming story of family bonds and coming-of-age friendships, offering readers both comfort and connection. At the same time, it thoughtfully sparks conversations about racism, immigration, the experiences of undocumented citizens, and the broader political climate, making it as timely as it is touching.

[Sally Stieglitz · Rating 5 out of 5]

wonderful coming of age book for middle grade readers!!