I couldn't stop reading this book. It was incredible. Every single chapter just made you want to keep reading. It was amazing.

Wow! Where do I start? The second I started reading this book, I fell in love. This book followed a young mixed girl with divorced parents, and how she tried to fit in when she felt like she was two halves. Sharon Draper captures Isabella's passion for her family and for the piano with eloquent prose and such rhythmic sentences. The book had such a good flow and a terrific balance of the internal and external conflict.

Preteen Isabella finds herself going in multiple directions when her parents divorce and end up with a 50-50 split custody of their daughter. Isabella fights for her own voice and identity against her parents and the roles that society believes she belongs to.

I reccommed this book to everyone cause this book is amazing for all ages

I loved this book. This author has written a lot of fantastic books. In this book though I felt like Isabella’s story wasn’t wrapped up properly. There are still way too many things you wonder at the end and it feels like that’s when the story really begins for her. The ending is the climax and you never really get to see how it resolves.

This book was awsome and I love Sharon Drapers other books. I would defenetaly recommend this book.

Isabella is such a relatable character. Although I like this story, It seems kind of unfinished. She never got to do 3 really big things and I think that those things should be in the epilogue. But overall it’s a great book and I totally recommend it.

Isabella has a story that is relatable for so many people. Her parents are divorced and she just wants somewhat of a normal life. She is an amazing role model for so many people, how she is trying to be strong for the people around her. Blended is an amazing story and I totally recommend it.

Isabella is an interesting character. In some ways, she feels real -- her parents are divorced and she kind of wishes they weren't; she's biracial and tired of being told she looks "exotic"; she's a tween who loves slime. In other ways, though, she's just a little too perky and polished and uses a few! too many! exclamation points! wow! (And I say this as someone who loves exclamation points!) Still, I probably err on the side of more authentic than not. And even if she falls a little too into the uncanny valley of not-quite-shallow, not-quite-fully-fleshed-out characters, we need someone to take her space.

The main reason I bring up the characterization of Isabella is that we just don't really have much else happening in this book until the very end. She just kind of goes about her daily life, piano practice happens, and parents make decisions without consulting their kids. (Shocking!) The police incident is a big shakeup and important -- but then, not long after, the book just...ends. I think this may have been intended to start conversations, but there almost isn't quite enough to go off of for a good discussion. What happened to the police officer who pulled the trigger? Who out of her family, if anyone, ended up talking to the media about what happened? Were there lawsuits? How did Isabella's life really change after that happened? (Surely it wouldn't be the same.) These things matter, and we aren't given the benefit of any of that information. Maybe that's the point, to talk about how the circumstances would change, but how many kids will really end up discussing this book the way it wants to be discussed?

Overall, some minor flaws don't negate this book's importance and value. I would still recommend this book in a heartbeat. But adult readers and caregivers of children reading this novel should be prepared to discuss it, not just set-and-forget.

Hand to younger readers who aren't quite ready for The Hate U Give, but still need to talk about racial differences and police bias incidents. I would be interested to hear from Black/white biracial kids whether they think this book is realistic or overly simplistic, as well.

Isabella is an eleven-year-old girl living two lives: one with her white mother and boyfriend with an awesome monster truck; another with her buttoned up black father, his decorator girlfriend and her over-achieving son. What I liked about the book was the honest depiction of life as a daughter of divorced parents. For the most part the relationship is amicable, but friction still erupts from time to time trapping Isabella in the middle. While riding with her soon-to-be stepbrother to her big piano recital (Pianopalooza), conflict comes in out of left field. The police scene is jarring and demonstrates a substantial lack of training on the part of the officers in that town. We are all appalled by such behavior. Would have liked to read about changes/ramifications to department members from their lack of judgment.