‘Good Bones’ Star Mina Starsiak Hawk’s Children’s Book: What to Know About ‘Built Together’

Mina Starsiak Hawk is adding children’s author to her long list of accomplishments! The HGTV star, whose Two Chicks and a Hammer business is showcased on the hit show Good Bones, is releasing her first book, Built Together, on Feb. 2, and it’s already on its way to becoming a bestseller. But how did the Indiana native’s mission of revitalizing her hometown lead her to writing her own children’s book? And how did her family, including husband Stephen Hawk and their two kids, 2-year-old son Jack and 4-month-old Charlie, inspire the heartwarming message behind her story?

Starsiak Hawk opened up about every facet of the book to PopCulture.com ahead of its release, spilling the details on everything from the inspiration for the story to the illustrations and local flavor added to each page. Keep scrolling to learn everything you can about Built Together, available for pre-order now.

What Is It About?

Starsiak Hawk “brings her signature humor and heart” to a “warm and welcoming story about families of all shapes and sizes,” the book’s description says in a preview. “Gather around for this celebration of diversity and acceptance as you are reminded just how wonderful it is to be part of your own unique family.”

What’s Her Inspiration?

Speaking to PopCulture, Starsiak Hawk said having her two children was a big part of the inspiration behind Built Together. “I read so many kids’ books… so, I thought it’d be fun to write one,” she explained. “It’s the things that I know, which is non-traditional family and construction, and put them together in this cute way. But, it’s that growing up, taking how our family is built and comparing it to how you build a house, like the tools you use.”

The book was written before Charlie was born, but Starsiak Hawk said it’s a reflection of her own family in a major way. “Less and less now, it’s that traditional mom, dad, two-and-a-half kids,” she said of the modern family structure. “People seem to appreciate how open our family is about that. We’re crazy. We all love each other. We figure it out.”

Who Did the Illustrations?

The vivid and charming drawings in Built Together were done by illustrator Barbara Bongini, and set a “really perfect” tone for the book, Starsiak Hawk told PopCulture. During the planning process for the book, the Good Bones star said she immediately clicked with Bongini’s “bright” and “playful” art.

“I saw the first draft of it and I was like, ‘Great. I look amazing. My hair is fabulous!’ My husband’s — there were probably six or seven emails back and forth because he was like, ‘Why do I look so dumb? I need a beard. I look silly without a beard. I look like a jerk,’” she joked of the process. “We’re going back and forth trying to make his character right. And then I sent her pictures of the kids and the dogs and the family.”

How Does It Support Local Businesses?

There are plenty of local Indianapolis nods as well in the art. “It’s really fun because we have a lot of the local stuff like our Indianapolis cool shirt and IU, and our Two Chicks and a Hammer gear,” Starsiak Hawk continued of the illustrations. “So, it feels very real.”

Because she’s so dedicated to highlighting the work of local businesses in her real life, the HGTV star said she made sure that aspect translated to her book. “That’s one of the best things that we’ve been able to do locally with the show,” she said. “We get to use so many cool local vendors and cool local gear from The Shop. We use furniture and we use art from a lot of these small businesses, especially right now to get even just a little bit extra face time with people they wouldn’t usually. So, being able to even sneak that into the book a little bit, I think, is fun.”

How Is It Selling?

The book is already a success, having sold out its first run of pre-orders on Amazon within just days of Starsiak Hawk’s announcement. “It was really cool,” the author told PopCulture. “After I did the first [Instagram] Story about it, how many people reached out wanting to figure out how to get from Canada, U.K., Australia, because it’s crazy to think how many countries the show airs in. I don’t even know all of them.”

How Is Mina Reacting?

Husband Steve had to remind Starsiak Hawk that “these things are a big deal,” when it comes to her first foray into the book world. The Two Chicks and a Hammer co-founder said he encourages her constantly to stop and celebrate the milestones in her career such as Built Together pre-orders selling out.

“I think I’m just always moving so fast,” she admitted to PopCulture. “It’s like, ‘OK, I got to do the next thing now. There’s not really time to celebrate that other thing.’ And so, when I stop and think about it, it is very, very cool and exciting. Yeah, I’m excited!”

What’s Next?

With her first book already a success before its release, Starsiak Hawk’s future in publishing isn’t at an end. While she “doesn’t feel old enough” to be writing a memoir, she does have something in the early creative stages, she told PopCulture. 

“I don’t know enough. I haven’t experienced enough to write a memoir, but I feel like there are things that I want to say,” she said. “I literally had a Google Drive doc that said ramblings and I would type in it and so, I’ve been working with a guy to help me and actually have an outline of 15 chapters. It’s like in the creative [stages], shopping it around to see if anyone’s interested kind of phase, so we’ll see.”