Oh my I am totally in love with this book Pighearted and I cannot believe that it is Alex Perry's Debut. I do like some contemporary middle grade but my main go to are usually fantasy books but what struck me when I first saw the tour was that little pig face and I was totally intrigued.


It gave me the feels of Wilbur in Charlotte's Web but in my view Jeremiah 6 was so adorable you could not fail to fall in love with him as a character. I especially loved the references to film stars and films and tv which J6 would talk about. I believe this would make an excellent book club pick and I certainly am going to suggest it to a book club I belong to as I think everyone will get something out of it.

Alex was not shy using such topics is medical science and how ethical is it to grow human hearts in animals like pigs. I had no idea this was a thing but the biggest discussion would probably be on how far would you go to save someone you loved.

Like I said before this book made me me ugly cry and the only other book which moved me as much as this was Show Us Who You Are by Elle McNicoll and I gave that five stars. So Pighearted too has five stars and along with A Kind of Spark are my no1 reads of 2021 . I will be eagerly following Alex and can't wait to see what she will publish next.

Wow. I have been thinking about this for days and I don’t say this lightly but this honestly may be one of my favorite books I have read all year. And more shocking? It’s a middle grade reader. I have ALL the feels for this one friends and it wrecked me in the absolute best way.

Jeremiah knows something is wrong. His heart feels all funny and it’s not just nerves from playing in his first soccer game. It’s the start of a heart attack. He knows he needs to stop but he’s determined to score a goal. But his heart has other plans. Jeremiah was born with a heart condition and now he needs a new heart and fast. Enter J6, the only one of his five brothers to survive the lab, who fancies himself something special. He’s smart, brave, in fact he considers himself a therapy pig. But what he doesn’t know, is he is growing the perfect heart for Jeremiah. When the lab sends him to live with Jeremiah and his family after some unforeseen circumstances, he is determined to find family and gain a brother. At first Jeremiah thinks J6 is some sort of heart therapy pig. But soon suspicions arise and the truth comes to light. Both Jeremiah and J6 are determined to keep each other safe-even if their lives depend on it.

This book. ALL. THE. EMOTIONS! For starters, the characters are fantastic. J6 is smart and hilarious! I love the alternating view point between Jeremiah and J6 and it’s fascinating seeing things from J6’s point of view. He’s fantastic! I laughed SO many times. I also loved the adventure this book took me on. It definitely was different then what I imagined but is such a good way. I was hooked and had to know how this ended. Don’t get me wrong, this one was also deeply heavy and emotional. It covers some hard topics: chronically ill children, the feelings older siblings deal with when having a sick younger sibling, the hardships on parents, the feeling that being sick is something Jeremiah did wrong, grief, etc. This would be a great book to read with some older kids and have some fantastic discussions! I also loved some little details like Jeremiah’s dad leaves his job to stay home with him and his mom works, his best friend worships at a mosque, and there is a reference to Pokémon and boy bands which made me smile. There is so much goodness in this book! I will definitely be sitting this one back to read with my daughter when she is older. This is marketed as a middle grade reader but it is definitely something ANYONE can enjoy!

“And then I heard him, too. I felt him. I always would.”

Oh my heart what a beautiful story told by debut author Alex Perry about Jeremiah, a boy with a fatal heart condition and J6, a pig and the only one of his five brothers who survived the research lab, and sent to live with Jeremiah’s family.

This is such a well written story about a boy with chronic illness and the pig whose heart could save him. A unique story that is both heartwarming and heartbreaking, with themes about friendships, medical ethics, and stem cell treatments. Besides heart, there is also a lot of humor in this thought provoking story perfect for readers of all ages.

I highly recommend!

I read this book as part of the blog tour hosted by TBR & Beyond Tours. Special thanks to Little, Brown Books for Young Readers for providing an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. 3.5 stars rounded up.

I have mixed feelings about this book. On the one hand, I found it highly entertaining and don't remember the last time I laughed so much (practically every other sentence) while reading. I also learned about chimera, animals (in this case unborn piglets) that have human cells injected into them for the purpose of growing human organs that can be used for those with terminal or life-threatening illnesses. On the other hand, I found the writing to be a bit choppy at times and it was hard to connect to the emotions of this story. I was sure that this story about a young boy with a heart condition and his pig with a healthy heart for him would have me shedding more than a few tears especially towards the end, but something didn't click for me. Still, I think it's a book many of the intended young audience will have a lot of fun with, and I also had a good time reading it!

This was a surprisingly action-packed and fast-paced story that had a lot going on! There are plenty of hospital trips but also more than a few ambitious escape plans, a couple of "running away" moments, food festival shenanigans, operation Rescue Ranch, and a hurricane. When we first meet Jeremiah, his heart has given out on him because he pushed himself too hard while playing soccer. Jerry acts out a lot throughout the story, and it's what gets him and J6 into a lot of trouble, but it was easy to empathise with him. He just wants to live like every other kid, one without a heart condition, but he is weighed down by guilt for "not being (literally) good enough" and for being a burden because of how his illness has affected his family's life. I thought the chronic illness rep was very well done!

I honestly didn't think I'd have so much fun reading from a pig's perspective before but my gosh, J6 really stole the show in this book! This little pig not only has a human heart but it's quite possible a human brain too. He not only understands humans but is able to process the media he watches, albeit more than a little incorrectly at times, and his POV had me laughing quite often! His precocious observations and the child-like directness with which it's delivered was extremely entertaining. J6 wants nothing more than to live his best life (and not be made into a sandwich, thank you very much) and to have a family, specifically a brother. It took a little while for Jerry to realise that J6 is more than just your average little pig, and I enjoyed seeing them develop the brotherly bond and come to respect and love each other. It was definitely touching and gave my heart warm hugs!

Aside from these two, Jeremiah's parents, sisters and two BFFs played a role in the story too. I wished that this aspect of the story was included a bit more—it would've been nice to get more meaningful interactions with the parents and sisters, especially with Jazmine because it's clear they would do anything for Jeremiah. And the author does pose an interesting question: how far would you go to save someone's life? Jerry's family would clearly go to all the lengths to ensure he gets to live a long and healthy life. Jeremiah's friends, Adnan and Paloma each had a small role in supporting him, although Adnan had more presence. He often used humour to help Jeremiah take his mind off of his condition, and it was funny and sweet at the same time. I loved his upfront honesty too!

Overall, this was a really cute middle grade read that I think is also suitable for all ages. It's a touching story about a boy, his brother pig, forgiveness, and family. I also learned a lot about hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and what it means to live with a heart condition, but also the trials involved in finding a perfect replacement. This was both an engaging and educational read! OINK 🐷

Right from the start, I knew that I would cry my eyes out at some point. It was just how the book was set up:

While I thought that the end felt a bit drawn out, the pacing was rather good. The story is told by alternating between the Boy, Jeremiah, and the Pig, Jeremiah-6, or J6 for short. J6 is not really a pig, he is a special pig. He was especially grown to grow a human heart, fitted with stemcells from Jeremiah who was born with a heart condition. J6 is incredibly smart. He understands most of what people say to him, knows how to read and spell and has a great and funny personality. I loved J6. His need to be part of a family, to be a brother, just warmed my heart and also broke it in many tiny pieces.

While Jeremiah was kind of whiney and even obnoxious at some points, I actually quite liked him. He’s a boy that had to live with a dangerous heart condition his whole live and all the drawbacks that come with it. Of course he would be stubborn and also anxious. I loved how he changed the more contact he had with J6 and how much he grew to love this little pig.

The story is full of compassion and emotions. It plays with the idea of so called chimeras, animals with human cells that could be used to grow organ transplants. According to the author’s note, these kinds of projects are already in the works. It makes you think about the morals of harvesting organs from animals that might have more than just human cells, that might have some kind of concience, be able to learn like a human or are able to reason like a human. It was an interesting thought.

The book is very character driven. I loved to follow J6 and Jeremiah, to see how they experience the same kind of occurences differently. I loved the sibling bond they had. I also liked Justus and Jazmine, Jeremiah’s sisters. They had different kind of views on J6.

I’m afraid this review is a bit jubled, but in the end, I really loved the book. I loved the characters and I loved to follow their experiences. The book gave me a look to think about and a lot of feelings and I enjoyed the pacing and the topic. I would definitely recommend the book but maybe also advise to take some tissues with you while reading, just in case.