This book had an interesting premise, and I was excited to read it. Sadly, the story did not live up to the expectations, and that might not be on me. I found myself struggling to connect and get into the book.

How to Build A Heart by Maria Padian
Rating: ★★★☆☆

How to Build A Heart by Maria Padian tackles themes of identity and family dynamics with sensitivity and insight. The protagonist's journey of self-discovery unfolds against the backdrop of a blended family and the challenges of adolescence. Padian's writing is engaging, capturing the complexities of navigating relationships and finding one's place in the world. While I appreciated the realistic portrayal of teenage struggles and the protagonist's growth, I found the pacing at times slow. The book explores important themes of belonging and personal integrity, offering a nuanced exploration of identity formation and the search for authenticity.

I went into this book because of the beautiful cover, and was highly impressed with Izzy's story and how beautifully written it was. I would recommend to my friends and it made me curious to the author's other book.

This book was good! A great balance of light and heavy elements, it was a poignant and very refreshing read. Would recommend to a friend for sure!

This was such a beautiful story. I love mixing a little YA in my reading from time to time, and this book is exactly why I do that!

Izzy hasn’t had the easiest life, he father passed away in the military years ago and her mother is working paycheck to paycheck to give her children a better life. When Izzy’s family gets the exciting news that they are getting a habitat for humanity home, she’s excited, but doesn’t want anyone to know because she’s ashamed her family is poor. Ultimately Izzy has to make the decision of what’s most important in her life, family, friends or being someone she isn’t. Which is super hard when you are a teenager just trying to fit in.

Overall I give this book 4.5 stars. It was such a real story and you could feel all the feelings Izzy had throughout the situations in this book. I love how this story ended and the way she matured through the book! I highly recommend!

How to Build a Heart is an emotional YA novel about learning how to fit in and stay true to who you are. The duality of feeling shame about something that you are also incredibly proud of is something that young adults can relate to and that adult readers can remember. Padian captures those emotions without speaking down to her audience and giving them space to form their own opinions on characters and motives. It's definitely a book I would share with my nieces and nephews.

A classic story of figuring who you are when you are a part of different worlds. Izzy just wants to fit in and has to learn that, sometimes, we have to make space. Good read: starts slow but ends nicely.

Maria Padian’s book How to Build A Heart is a exceptional! Thank You Algonquin books and Netgalley for sending me an ARC.

This novel rings with illuminating truths of what it means to find yourself during a raging storm of what people expect you to be. Izzy’s journey is heartfelt and thoroughly deep of adult themes such as facing financial difficulties, how to deal with abuse/bullies, religion, sacrifices, and loss. Izzy grapples with life changing decisions, some of which she has to deal with on her own at only sixteen. Thankful Izzy has a sassy yet questionable best friend in Rox and a cute rambunctious little brother, Jack to help ease the growing tension and realization that she’s slowly and surely becoming a young adult.

Isabella “Izzy” Crawford is exactly what a teenager aiming to figure out her life embodies. I love Izzy’s awkward moments, her hesitant yet honest nature to try and not lie to others, and her strive to make sense of the constant changes in her life.

4 stars!

I got an advanced copy of this book to read from NetGalley! Thanks, NetGalley!

Isabella 'Izzy' Crawford is half-white. She lives in a mobile home park with her widowed Puerto-Rician mother (who works as a nurse's aide) and little brother, Jack. She attends a private school on a scholarship, where she befriends young Audrey and starts developing feelings for Audrey's older brother Sam. But to fit in at her school, she hides her poor life (and friend Roz) from her new classmates. Will she learn that true friends love you for who you are?

I enjoyed this story, but still have a bit of trouble understanding how the title and story match. Honestly, I think a better title would be "How to Open a Heart". But I loved the audiobook of this story because it helped me with my focusing issues.

There are times I wanted to grab Izzy and tell her that she should stop hiding who she is. I loved the scenes that took place at the Shackletons' house (Sam and Audrey and their parents). There were other places I enjoyed and even a villain to despise (not saying who). I also enjoyed the 'they're-getting-a-house-built-for-them', but was disappointed that the 'final' project was toward the end of the book.

There are some heavy topics where Roz is concerned, some topics concerning child abuse, so be forewarned.

It's an enjoyable, light romance read. I'm glad I added this to my collection.

While my life circumstances differ from Izzy’s greatly, so many moments in this book took me right back to being a teenager facing various feelings and decisions as I navigated life and dealt with the different relationships in my path. That relatable kind of writing is what I look for in a book when I’m hoping to get into the story and be able to see the world through the protagonist’s eyes.

I also really enjoyed that this plot was about so much more than a young romance but focused on the themes of friendship and strength through a hard time. I found this line especially beautiful:

"I have felt my father’s absence in every room I enter, in every new town we’ve called home, for a long time. But this afternoon, in this muddy cow pasture, surrounded by family and friends? I feel Charlie Crawford like I feel the sun on my face and the wind in my hair. I feel him all around this place."

Overall, in between reading thrillers and dramas and heavy topics, it’s nice to read something light but not shallow, and something pensive but still hopeful

This book took me by surprise. I really enjoyed it. It was well written and I love the story. This book had the right amount of emotions. The story keeps you hooked.

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC of How to Build a Heart by Maria Padian.

Izzy has already dealt with so much in your young sixteen years. Her dad died in Iraq, her mom is working so hard to support her two kids, and her best friend is dealing with an abusive step dad. But even still, Izzy is hopeful that her life is about to change, especially once she gets a scholarship to a prestigious HS, and attracts the eye of the handsome popular guy at school. However, she is living with a facade that could be cracked at any second.

This is a good YA book in the sense that it addresses a lot of issues that teens may face, single parenthood, violence, class issues, government help, romance, difficult friendships etc. And I would be just fine recommending it to any teen.

Having said that, it fell a bit flat for me. I really struggled to latch on to the plot or characters. I can't say exactly why, it was just dry, especially for a YA novel.

How to Build a Heart was such a fantastic YA coming-of-age read. Maria Padian managed to touch on so many relevant issues for youth, while still writing a story that felt fun to read. Izzy is just sixteen, but she isn't just worried about friends and boys. She faces racial and wealth issues at school, worries endlessly about how she will be perceived by others, struggles with crushes and friendships, and on top of all that, familial drama too. It's a loaded book, but written beautifully and in such a way that I, at 31, felt like I was back in high school. The charged emotions, the outsider feeling absolutely everyone feels, and the reality of facing prejudices all were felt by Izzy and by me while I read.

How to Build a Heart is a timely, poignant story that while realistic, still feels so good to read.

Thanks to Algonquin Young Readers and the author for allowing me to participate in a book tour welcoming the paperback edition of How To Build a Heart. This was a sweet and funny YA novel with realistic characters, dialogue, and relationships.

WOW, so much heart & emotion in this book - highly recommend! Izzy deals with SO much in her life like many teenagers do, and as she’s dealing with all of these struggles, she’s also just trying to find her own place in the world.

This particular story is just written in a way that I can imagine other teens find relatable, and that they can easily connect with. Well written and different, I am so glad I had the chance to read this one thanks to Algonquin Young Readers.

I really enjoyed this. I loved the character development and how the MC went through lots of personal changes in her life and how building the family home strengthened her and her family values

"There are things we cannot control in life, Isabella. Things that are not our fault. But then there are choices. And more than anything, our choices are who we are. What we choose to do. Who we choose for our friends. You make good choices. Most of the time...But a person who makes bad choices? You cannot help that person. And they will drag you down."

Making good choices. This is one of the things that my parents harped on during my teen years and as I reflect, I find myself saying similar words to my own teens. Been a teenager is tough. Understanding that your choices matter is even harder to grasp.

How do you accurately describe a book that was like an emotional rollercoaster? We have all felt like Izzy Crawford at some point during our teen years - trying to fit in and find our place in the world. That is what is relatable about this touching story, but there is more to it than just that.

"Blood makes you related, but loyalty makes you family." Over and over in this book we see how Izzy develops friendships with people who are different from her. She also reconnects with her deceased father's family and in doing so she has to learn some hard truths about racism. Izzy also has to navigate the abuse that one of her friends is constantly having to endure.

I loved this book. It covered many topics -relationships, abuse, bullying and mental health.

Thank you to Algonquin Books and NetGalley for the #gifted copy.

“i thought you were big uncle charlie’s daughter. and he never ran from anything.”

honestly, i had absolutely no idea what to expect going into the story. of course i had read what the book was roughly about, but it was so much more than that. the first half was super quick, i pretty much flew through the story! it then started to drag a lot, which impacted my reading experience and enjoyment quite a bit. nevertheless, the writing was great and got me really invested in our protagonist izzy and later on some side characters as well that we got to know throughout the story.

i related really well with izzy’s struggles and her just being lost. she has to deal with lots of difficult things, such as racism, poverty and grief. other topics that don’t directly affect izzy but are important aspects of the novel as well are domestic abuse and mental health, so please be aware of that going into this. i thought the depiction of all these things was done really well that sometimes you almost forget that this is all a fictional piece of work, because everything was so realistic and these are all issues we have to face in real life as well. the storyline with habitat for humanity was so refreshing! i’ve never read about anything like it before and also didn’t know it was an actual organization until after finishing the book, so that was something i have really enjoyed to see included.

another point is the romance! it didn’t take over the importance of the story, but more so remained on the side while not being neglected. it always kind of irritates me when the plot suddenly goes dead because the romance is the main focus, so i really liked that this wasn’t the case here. above all, the story highlights the importance of friendship, family and honesty. also, the ending got me emotional and yelling out loud.

thank you so much to the publisher for providing me with an arc in exchange for an honest review!

→ 4 stars

How to Build a Heart is a coming of age story about Izzy and the people in her life. She is 16 so she doesn’t truly understand how the world works. Her father died 6 years ago and ever since, her mother has worked hard to give Izzy and her brother the best life she could. This meant that they moved a lot. When the family gets a chance to build a house through Habitat for Humanity, Izzy is worried about what everyone will think. Her best friend, Roz, comes from a horrible home life and she doesn’t care what other people think so much as she comes across as hating everyone. Izzy will learn that not everything is what she thinks and that sometimes people surprise you.

I enjoyed this story so much! I couldn’t put it down. I had to remind myself a couple of times that Izzy is 16 since I wanted to yell at her for not thinking. I really loved the message that family is not blood, family is loyal. I think everyone could use that reminder at times.

Seeing the horrible things Roz had to go through due to her mother’s lack of concern, made me so upset. It’s sad that there are children out there who have to deal with that on a regular basis.

I really enjoyed that we get to see the inside workings of Habitat for Humanity to an extent. It’s a wonderful organization and I’m so glad it was included.

Overall, I would highly recommend this book.

Isabella Crawford has a lot going on. On the surface, she attends a private Catholic school and is a part of its well-known acapella group. However, if the veil were to be lifted, you'd find a teenage girl who after the death of her father, has shuffled around from place to place with her mother and little brother & currently lives in an impoverished mobile-home community. When her family is chosen for the next Habitat for Humanity project, she is excited, but feels like she must keep this part of her life from her friends at school and her newest crush.
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While this story is focused on Izzy trying to juggle all the pieces that make up her life, it is also about her coming of age. It is about identity and understanding that what you've been through impacts who you are, but does not define you as a person. It deals with familial relationships and what constitutes them as worthy of holding the title of family. It depicts the repercussions of keeping secrets amongst family, friends & young love. It broaches the topic of racism and abuse where you shouldn't expect it. It is a story of a girl allowing herself to become whole.
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The term Poverty Porn was something foreign to me, til this book. When Isabella refuses to share her personal story of strife in order to gain the sympathy of those donating money for Habitat for Humanity, I was so proud of her. The practice of exploiting those living under dire circumstances in order to gain higher monetary contributions is extremely controversial.