Hazel Newlevant

"No Ivy League gracefully delivers a messy truth behind the essential process of questioning and reckoning." — Nate Powell, artist of the March trilogy When 17-year-old Hazel takes a summer job clearing ivy from the forest in Portland, Oregon, the only plan is to earn some extra cash to put toward concert tickets. Homeschooled, affluent, and sheltered, Hazel soon finds that working side by side with at-risk teens leaves no room for comforting illusions of equality and understanding. This uncomfortable and compelling memoir is an important story of a teen’s awakening to the racial insularity of the upper class, the power of white privilege, and the hidden history of segregation in Portland.

No Ivy League

Wes Michaud

loved this book i loved the story the art it's just grate in my opinion

Josee Blanchard

No Ivy League 
By: by Hazel Newlevant 
 
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.

My review: Well for me this made me have anxiety. I loved it nonetheless it’s just I can’t imagine being in her position for many of the things that take place. You feel for her. Since she is being judged so much by people that she does not know. She is educated on school subjects but when it comes to socializing and knowing more about racism and how they feel. For me I enjoyed this graphic novel. Love the simplicity of the drawings. How you could understand the emotions without words. Sometimes in graphic novels I find that I can’t figure out what they want to say. If the author comes out with other graphic novel or novels, I would pick them up cause I love reading anything on mental health and how to react to social justice.

I gave it 3.5 stars

It’s a great graphic novel.
Jozay’s Bookshelf

Leelynn Brady

Find this and more reviews and content on my blog Sometimes Leelynn Reads

Disclaimer: I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you to Edelweiss, Lion Forge, and Hazel Newlevant for this free copy.

I don't know when I finally realized that this was an autobiography of the author's life growing up, but I think I finally got it. I mean, unless Hazel named the main character after themselves for no other reason than just to use it, which I doubt.

I think after realizing that this was a personal story, I went into this in a totally different light. One, I wanted to make sure that I give this story the right attention, and remember that what they decided to tell us and share with us was personal. Two, I wanted to understand where they were coming from when certain situations came up, without judgment. I want to say that I was able to do just that, and from there, I was able to appreciate this novel for what it was.

There were themes in this novel that while I may not have gone through personally, Newlevant was able to portray in a way that I would be able to understand and put myself in their shoes. For one, Hazel in the novel was homeschooled and taking community college courses at the age of seventeen. Extremely proud of them and their accomplishments from just that point alone! To top it off, they were able to get a summer job with No Ivy League, where the company's mission is to save the forest by removing the poison ivy that has been growing in that area since European colonists brought it there. It's to help maintain the environment since the poison ivy can damage the ecosystem of the forest. So Hazel takes on a lot, while also working with their best friend and their boyfriend on a project to win them some money to travel to DC to see one of their favorite bands perform live.

Another thing that I felt Hazel go through was that they felt out of place with the other teens that worked in the group, from cultural differences, sexual identity differences, and even romantic differences. There are times where you feel like Hazel feels out of place, but doesn't really know why, or doesn't want to explain why. They just had a weird day, which is okay, but that also didn't stop them from doing what they had set out to do in the first place.

We also see Hazel develop feelings for their instructor, who is 15 years older than her and can be a borderline inappropriate relationship. There are times where Tono (short for Antonio) feels like their conversations are straying from what is appropriate between an adult and a student, and Hazel seems to want to push that boundary, despite having a boyfriend who is a year and a half younger. Now, I get having a crush on an authority figure. I'm pretty sure I had a few crushes, but I don't think I could have acted on it. Hazel is pretty damn brave, or foolish. Take your pick, but I'm not judging. Nothing's wrong with having those feelings, right?

Wow, sorry that got a long longer than I was anticipating. Basically I really enjoyed this graphic novel, and I felt like I learned a little bit more of Hazel Newlevant and what they wanted to tell us about their coming-of-age story. It was deeply personal, honest and brave to be so vulnerable like that.

Additional Disclaimer: I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

No Ivy League

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