A review by deedoodah_reads
Out of Heart by Irfan Master

Did not finish book.

1.0

 

✧ L E T M E S U M M A R I S E ✧

In Out of Heart, Adam learns that his grandfather has not only died but has donated his heart without telling the rest of his family. The recipient, William, has no real family and finds himself without any purpose. Until he meets Adam’s family who are all a little bit different in their own ways. But maybe William, who has unknowingly took so much from Adam’s family, has a lot to offer them as well.

✧ W H A T W O R K E D W E L L ✧

Out of Heart provides quite a genuine representation of life in Britain, and focusses on Muslim culture throughout the story. It was quite interesting to see the processes that Adam had to be apart of once his grandfather died, and just how different the grieving process is in other religions and cultures.

✧ W H A T N E E D E D W O R K ✧

I actually stopped reading this book for over a week because of how boring the whole thing was. Between incredibly short chapters and random pauses (and some thrown in facts about the heart), I really struggled to read this book. That’s very disappointing considering the whole book was only 272 pages long.

There was nothing to really draw me in as a reader and keep me hooked. As the characters were pretty flat, there was a lack of real depth to them and I just struggled to form any connections with them.

This is definitely more of a personal gripe, but Adam’s interaction with Cans was just so cringe. As someone who has grown up in British culture, I appreciate that slang has a large place in teenage boys lives – but the use in the book was just really, really awkward and I didn’t enjoy their dialogue at all.

✧ W H A T T H R E E W O R D S ✧

Boring, boring, boring.

✧ T O C O N C L U D E ✧

I’m quite sad at my conclusion for this one as it was a book I really wanted to enjoy. I found that at times, the writing of Out of Heart was beautifully poetic. However, the lack of development in other areas and the fact the book was hard to get through just couldn’t overturn my dislike of Out of Heart. I would like to see more transplant representation in YA however, so it was great to see that here.

⭐