White Ivy

Ivy Lin, a Chinese immigrant, always felt like she didn't fit in. From a poor family that bordered on abusive, attending a wealthy school, Ivy struggled academically and socially. She coped with feeling inadequate by shoplifting, developing a secret relationship with a kid from the wrong side of the tracks, and eventually set her sights on a handsome, kind classmate. She also desired the automatic respect and attractiveness that comes from being a WASP, something she aspires to.

This novel is a fascinating character study of a young woman who doesn't like herself and feels the only way to become something in life is to hide her true nature. Inherently selfish and constantly scheming, Ivy is difficult to like. But the novel was easy to show more love - very well written and completely absorbing. show less

Well, I DIDN’T see all that coming when I started reading the book about a Chinese immigrant family who moved to Massachusetts. I thought it was going to be a coming of age story, but it’s a lot more than that. Ivy is a very original character. Growing up she learned to steal from her maternal grandmother who started the family career of selling used items on the internet. Ivy does not fit the mold of disciplined, polite Chinese child. She is angry most of the time. She’s extremely unlikable, which made it hard for me to believe that she was accepted as the future member of a WASP family when she married the son. And yet, Yang can pull me into believing the story. She had no moral compass in most of her decisions. And yet, at the show more end, Yang again gets me to believe that Ivy finally sees the importance of family. Soooo….my next question is what Ivy and Gideon’s future will hold. I learned from all the twists and turns in this story, that what I anticipated was not what I got. I didn’t think I’d like this book, but I was compelled to stay up late to finish reading. show less

A dark and twisty mesmerizing tale! White Ivy starts out as a coming-of-age story about a young Chinese girl whose childhood is spent being passed between her loving but somewhat immoral grandmother in China and her hardworking, stern parents in Massachusetts. You can imagine what kind of problems this causes in Ivy's personality and moral compass, but just when her life starts to take a dark turn, the story skips ahead to Ivy's working life after college, as she reconnects with a crush from school and his wealthy and politically influential family, as well as other darker influences. Not that anything in this story is black and white, the nuances and subtle flaws of all the character are what makes this book so suspenseful.

I loved this show more story, it kind of reminded me of the Goldfinch in the way different peoples lives and fates intertwine throughout the years and the dark and light sides of their personalities are revealed. The end was compelling and yet left me wanting to read more. I can't wait to see what Susie Yang will write next! show less

A highly complex character, Ivy Lin manages to be simultaneously vulnerable and terrifying. Brought to the United States from China as a young child, Ivy grows up internalizing the experiences of her immigrant family, while yearning for the trappings of the patrician lifestyle she glimpses at the private school she attends. It is there that she meets Gideon, who will be the object of her obsessive attentions when he reappears in her world years later. As she becomes embroiled in a love triangle with a second man from her past whose background more closely aligns with her own, Ivy struggles to hold on to what she believes will finally bring her peace. What follows raises questions about what makes us who we are, rendering White Ivy not show more only an engrossing read, but fertile ground for meaningful book club discussion. show less

"She had long ago realized that the truth wasn't important, it was the appearance of things that would serve her. Muddy water, let stand, becomes clear."

This dark coming-of-age novel traces the story of Ivy Lin, who immigrated to the U.S. as a child and never felt like she could find a place where she fit in so she lies, steals and cons her way into the life she wants.

Being different from her white, privileged classmates creates a desperate yearning in Ivy for the finer things including her golden boy classmate, Gideon Speyer. But her teenage crush on him ends in a terrible humiliation so she hooks up with another misfit named Roux before moving away.

Fast forward a decade. Ivy and Gideon meet again as adults and this time she's show more determined he and the rarified world he represents will be hers. Ivy's scheming is thoroughly entertaining and kept me wondering when the other shoe would drop. An intriguing love-triangle develops (I guess it's a love cube at one point!) and I was never sure who Ivy would choose - Gideon, the boy she's dreamt of since middle school but who only knows the facade of Ivy she allows him to see, or Roux, the dangerous man who may be the only person who truly understands her yet loves her anyway. As you read, you know that whatever happens, it won't be without carnage but like a bad accident on the side of the highway, you still can't turn away.

Susie Yang's writing is funny and sharp and she manages to make a completely unlikeable character somewhat sympathetic. Despite how horrible she is, I wanted Ivy to find happiness and realize that what she'd been striving for all her life wasn't what she really needed. I found the details about the Lins' experiences as immigrants as well as their life before in China compelling and wish there had been more of the family's story. I also thought the resolution of the book felt a bit rushed (I wanted more of a reason for Ivy to make the choices she did) but overall, this was a stunning debut that I won't soon forget. Like the plant she's named for, Ivy crawls into your consciousness and takes over.

Thank you to NetGalley, Simon & Schuster and the author for an advanced ecopy to review. show less

A superbly impressive debut from an author with an unlikely background in pharmacy and tech, White Ivy by Susie Yang is an excellent character study and an absorbing read. Ivy is just a young girl when she immigrates from China to join her parents who have already settled in Massachusetts. Up until then, she had been raised by her grandmother, from whom she learned how to proudly steal and cheat. She continues these practices when she arrives in the U.S., ashamed of her humble origins and her family’s poverty. She longs to be accepted by the other children at school, and idolizes the wealth and ease experienced by her mostly white peers. She especially is enamored of a boy named Gideon, who seems to embody all the qualities she would show more love to possess. Ivy pines for the golden boy, but her only real fiend is Roux, a boy from a similar background to her own. Now an adult, Ivy finally seems on the cusp of achieving all she desires with Gideon when Roux, now a man with unsavory connections, pops unexpectedly back into her life. Ivy is torn between assimilation with the WASP family she has always wanted and the allure of the dangerous “bad boy” who knows her true personality. Ivy is a complicated character and Yang does a fabulous job portraying her devious and manipulative nature while also evoking sympathy for her. Completely lacking a moral compass and desperate to escape what she believes is a traumatically embarrassing family, Ivy’s grasping and striving is at once pathetic and horrific. This cunning duality, maintaining a façade of compliance and impeccable manners as a cover for naked ambition makes for an engrossing story. The unexpected ending takes an interesting turn and yet makes perfect sense given the author’s skillful unveiling of events. White Ivy is a compulsive read, a gripping and unique twist on the immigration tale with a truly unforgettable and unrepentant “protagonist.”

Thanks to the author, Simon & Schuster and Library Thing for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review. show less

A tour de force of remarkable prose – I think I burned out the battery on my Kindle just from highlighting memorable passages as they poured forth from Ivy’s mind and heart. Not to mention that Ivy’s cranky mother Nan and beloved grandmother Meifang have a meaningful saying of wisdom for any and every situation – and they aren’t shy about telling Ivy what they think. I couldn’t put this one down!

*Before I dive into the review, a big thank you to Susie Yang, Simon & Schuster, and NetGalley for providing a free Advance Reader Copy in exchange for this honest review.*

A multi-faceted novel, this tale is partly a coming-of-age story, partly the account of an immigrant trying to fit-in in America, partly a new-adult yarn, and a show more bit of a chilling, gothic romance. Ivy, who moves to the U.S. when she is just five years old is a girl who ultimately is just trying to fit in. As her parents had to start-over when arriving in Boston, Ivy’s family doesn’t have a lot of money, but all Ivy wants is to own all the same things her classmates do, and feel like a “real” American girl. Her crush on Gideon, a boy at school, epitomizes her struggles and longing, as she views him and his family as if they are gilded and golden and everything she wishes her poor immigrant family could be.

Just when Ivy thinks she is “this close” to being “seen” by Gideon, she suffers a humiliation that is excruciating to her teenage mind, and then is also unexpectedly ripped from the rose-colored life in Boston that she loves.

Fast-forward more than a decade, Ivy is reacquainted with Gideon and his brightly-lit world. More determined than ever to keep Gideon and his sparkling upper-class world within her grasp, Ivy faces life-altering choices that she never expected.

Ivy kept me on my toes throughout this tale – never been quite sure what she was going to do next – and figuratively, proverbially biting my nails throughout! This book was a good contender for five stars, as I was enraptured from the beginning, yet there were two issues I just couldn’t get over: 1) There was a side-story two-thirds of the way through that, in my opinion, was left as a loose end; and 2) I just couldn’t reconcile the ending – to put it plainly, I didn’t “get” why Ivy made the choice in the end that she did. I felt, in regard to Ivy, that she could be the actor in that once-famous TV commercial puzzling, “What’s my motivation”.

That said, I will confidently say that this was a very well-written and supremely engaging novel that is well worth reading. An impressive debut by author Susie Yang. I’ll be very much looking forward to what she does next!

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