Tara underestimates herself a lot. She is capable of so much, and we see this throughout the book. She made it through her SATs and got into college, without ever having set foot in a school before. It's impressive to see her desire and perseverance. She is lucky to have found someone who truly believes in her and her abilities, and that person was one of her teachers. He pushed her to keep going and not to be afraid. I really like the sentence, “First find out what you are capable of, then decide who you are.” I believe that it has so many different meanings depending on one's perspective…