No Ivy League (graphic novel) by Hazel Newlevant - Paul's REVIEW

*I received this book as an eARC from Lion Forge via Edelweiss. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.*

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Title: No Ivy League
Creator: Hazel Newlevant 
Upcoming Release Date: September 3, 2019


Synopsis: When 17-year-old Hazel Newlevant takes a summer job clearing ivy from the forest in her home town of Portland, Oregon, her only expectation is to earn a little money. Homeschooled, affluent, and sheltered, Hazel soon finds her job working side by side with at-risk teens to be an initiation into a new world that she has no skill in navigating. This uncomfortable and compelling memoir is an important story of a girl's awakening to the racial insularity of her life, the power of white privilege, and the hidden story of segregation in Portland.

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Review: This graphic novel is a great memoir style introspection about an important summer that changed a young person's perspective on the world during an important age of development. Privilege is at the heart of this story. Understanding it, realizing the unfair benefits, and understanding your own. Race, class, gender, and teen hormones. 

I give this book a 4/5. It's a great look into the early 2000s Pacific Northwest. Class differences, homeschool, race, and so many other topics are brought up. This book gives you plenty to think about.


--PAUL