Seven Blessings by Ruchama King

Seven Blessings is the story of matchmakers and their clients in modern-day Jerusalem.  It is alternately a "fluffy" book - one critic calls King a "Jewish Jane Austen" - and a deep book filled with religious discussions.  Students would need a background in Israeli history, Judaism and Jewish culture, as well as a Hebrew vocabulary lesson to fully understand the text.  While the Israeli/Palestinian conflict is only mentioned in passing, the sections where King brings it into the story merit discussion.  For example, one of the characters says that their "neighbors want to exterminate" them, or when characters are stopped at checkpoints and searched for bombs.  Seven Blessings lends itself to a comparison with Pride and Prejudice - students and teachers could discuss the cultural similarities and differences in the two settings, as well as with dating and marriage in our own culture.  At the same time, the heavy reliance on religion throughout the book may be too much for some school environments.