Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a free advanced copy of this book to read and review.

I truly love this book. It is filled with so much heart. Ivy’s story is one that kids need to hear right now as they navigate not only a pandemic but finding their unique place in this world — who they are and who they want to be. It will be a welcome addition to my classroom library.

There is a lot going on in this book and in Ivy's life. There are so many characters that I was concerned about muddling them up , but they're all so different (without similar names) so I managed to keep them straight.
Ivy's selflessness turns from a coping/defence mechanism to a sledgehammer bludgeoning her insecurities.
I loved the diversity, the topics (such as surrogacy and coercion) that were raised, and the struggle to accept defeat - we all have found ourselves on that roundabout of self-denial, pushing harder and harder in the hopes that what we are attemtping will work.

This is a great book about having limits while being kind. I liked the plot and the message that the story conveyed. It's a great book for kids ages 9-12.

Struggling with her identity, 13-year-old, Ivy decides to focus on being known for being kind. Navigating the nuances of being kind and the complicated life of a middle schooler, some of her friendships get put to the test and she begins to realize that sometimes too much kindness is a bad thing. When she meets Lila, daughter of two mothers, Ivy sees herself in her. Having a father whose partner is also male, Ivy feels she can relate. Will Ivy find a balance between being herself and being kind? A story of self-discovery, friendship, and family, readers will relate to Ivy’s struggles. Characters are well-developed, but some readers may be put off by some of Ivy’s sublimation of negativity. This book contains a variety of people from diverse backgrounds, including Ivy being Jewish. A good addition to collections where such books are popular. 3 stars, Grades 6 to 8

Please note: This was a review copy given to us by NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. No financial compensation was received.

I loved this amazing story that takes a good, hard look on caring for yourself & others. 10 out of 10 would recommend. This title will stay with you.

This book was a DNF for me. I understand that anxiety has to be presented differently in order to be approachable for kids, but depiction just absolutely was not working for me. I gave it to my 10 year old for a minute to try out also, in case this was just an adult-doesn't-understand-thing, and it couldn't keep her attention. This is a shame, because I really wanted to like this book.

I received a free copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Harry N. Abrams, NetGalley, and Laurie Morrison for sharing this book with the LitReviewCrew in exchange for an honest review! I was immediately drawn to this book because of the author-Laurie Morrison. She knows the voice of a middle schooler and I love that she writes for the more mature middle graders. The second reason I was drawn to this book was because of the subtitle: Kind at All Costs and I kept that title in mind as I read because...that is ME! I felt so seen throughout this whole book.
3 more things about this book:
1-good kid
2-Inner growth
3-Baking

I hope you read this book and enjoy it as much as I did.

Laurie Morrison’s Ivy is a character you just love. Ivy has had so many ups and downs in her life and tries to shoulder so much responsibility that it keeps her from being honest with herself and those she loves. She is human, but trying to be superhuman and I think middle grade readers will completely relate to her. Highly recommend this one! E ARC provided by #netgalley.

What a lovely book! Excellent, modern story which many children will be able to relate to as it features a lot of feelings and emotions they will be going through as they try and find their place in the world. Everybody needs a Saint Ivy for a friend!

13-year old Ivy is kind, considerate and always putting the thoughts and feelings of others above her own. But as her mum acts as a surrogate for a family friend, her brother and her best friends feel to be pushing her away and leaving her out and she's asked to be a new student buddy to Lila, who really doesn't want a buddy, the new feelings that start to linger are A LOT. Ivy tries to deal with all these emotions by focussing on others, and when she receives a mysterious email from someone who needs a friend she has something new to focus on. Everyone she meets could have sent the email...but her journey to find out who starts to land her in hot water.

This was a brilliant story exploring some of the difficult feelings that could come with changing friendships, changes in family dynamics and growing up. I would definitely recommend it to children in year 5 and 6.

All families are different but just about every imaginable difference appears in this book. Ivy’s parents are divorced and her dad now lives with his new male partner. Her friend lives with her two moms and Ivy’s mum is acting as a surrogate for her best friend.

Ivy is struggling with all the changes around her and when she receives some anonymous emails, she goes out of her way to befriend and be extra nice to those who she thinks sent them.

There are some lovely moments in the story. I really liked the relationship Ivy has with her grandmother and their Friday afternoon baking sessions. However I began to find Ivy really irritating. I wasn’t really that interested in who the emails were from and just wanted her to get on with her life.

I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

What happens when a people pleaser holds it all in for too long?

Ivy is the kind friend. The one who listens to everyone else's problems and never wants to burden anyone else with her own. Her nontraditional family has taught her to be kind, empathetic and accepting of others, but it might be a lesson she's learned too well. Being the girl who doesn't say no leads to certain calamities in her 8th grade life. Now her friends are distancing themselves from her, she feels alienated from her mom and brother and the boy she was trying to help lands her in a mess of trouble. Ivy needs to learn that her happiness and her needs are as important as the others around her. Kindness isn't her only "thing".

This book is perfect for those kids who constantly put others before themselves. The ones who keep the peace at all costs. Ivy is a lesson to them in what happens when they don't consider their own emotional well being.

With thanks to NetGalley and ABRAMS Kids for an early copy in return for an honest review.

Ivy is struggling to figure out what her "thing" is and so she devotes herself to being incredibly kind to others so that kindness can be her thing. This doesn't always work out the way she planned and sometimes her kindness backfires. She is also dealing with some tricky situations at home, her parents' divorce, her mom's surrogate pregnancy, and friendships.

Although I enjoyed this story, due to the themes and content (dating, middle school setting) I likely won't recommend this book to my students (3rd and 4th graders) but think older MG readers would enjoy the story.

Middle schooler Ivy strives to be kind and helpful, so much so that her classmates refer to her as “Saint Ivy.” She’s dealing with some complicated situations at home, including a brother she was once close to withdrawing from her and a mom who is acting as a surrogate for a family friend. When she is the recipient of an anonymous email from someone in need of some kindness and sympathy, Ivy’s desire to help leads her to some difficult situations. Will Ivy’s actions lead her to find out that sometimes you can be too kind and helpful? The mystery of the anonymous email keeps readers guessing and engaged as the story unfolds. Readers may connect to Ivy’s desire to be liked so much that she sometimes puts her own needs and emotions aside to help others, even it is at her own expense. Saint Ivy: Kind at All Costs is a great upper middle grade read with lots of relatable experiences, including friendships, family changes, and issues at school for readers to consider along with the impact of Ivy’s behavior on her relationships with others.

Thank you to #NetGalley for an eARC of this book.

Saint Ivy is about a middle-school girl whose identity is so wrapped up in being kind to others that she struggles to share her own needs or struggles. I could relate to Ivy, and wish I'd had a book like this when I was her age. Ivy's life is unusual (her parents are divorced, but amicable, her dad is in a relationship with Leo, her mom is carrying a baby for her best friends), so Ivy's response is to try to do nice things for everyone around her. She doesn't want to be a problem to anyone or be seen as a problem. The trouble is, Ivy's bottled-up emotions keep her from truly connecting with others.
This is a powerful story, with endearing characters, a mystery, and a protagonist who needs to see herself as the main character of her own story, not just the side character in someone else's. Perfect for middle school age children, Saint Ivy is relatable and riveting!

I received an electronic ARC from ABRAMS Kids through NetGalley.
Charming story of a middle school girl learning to accept and cope with the full range of her emotions and responses to situations. Ivy doesn't have a "thing" or passion like her friends and others in her life. She feels her thing is to be kind so she works to be kind to everyone even when that means suppressing her own emotions. She doesn't let others see what she is feeling as she doesn't want to acknowledge the less than kind feelings and thoughts she experiences. Her situation would cause any of us to feel a wide gamut of emotions. Her parents have been divorced for three years, her dad is in a relationship with Leo, her mom is now a surrogate for close friends, her brother is struggling to learn how to cope with his emotions, and her best friend dumps her. All of this is woven into the framework of Morrison's story. The title is terrific and captures the motto Ivy lives by. Her classmates have nicknamed her Saint Ivy as she is always willing to listen and does thoughtful things for others. At the same time, she won't let them in and share how she truly is feeling. She's afraid to let them see anything beyond her kindness. A new girl arrives and Ivy takes some risks to listen to her and open up to her before the book ends.
A lovely though bit slow paced and wandering plotline. Middle grade readers will see themselves somewhere in the characters. It's interesting to see the dimensions in the other characters contrasted with the image Ivy projects about herself.

Ivy is kind to everyone and devotes every minute of her day to doing good deeds for others. It begins backfiring on her when her friends become upset that she never shares any of her problems or really talks to them. And Ivy does have problems. Her divorced parents have a very amicable relationship and Ivy's mom and her dad and his partner often attend school and social events together, which some kids think is weird. Her mom has agreed to be a surrogate for her best friend and her husband and is now dealing with certain complications due to her age and the pregnancy. In addition to Ivy's friends abandoning her, her brother doesn't talk or hang out with her anymore and is dealing with anger management issues, and the cute boy at school is asking Ivy to do his school work for him. Ivy bottles all this up and keeps telling herself that her feelings are not important since others need the help and support more than she does.

It is easy to see why the kid at Ivy's school find her a little irritating, she is almost "too perfect." Instead though, the reader can sympathize with Ivy and understand why she is determined to be a good person and not seek the attention, but also see what happens when a person doesn't acknowledge problems or frustrations or hard times in their own lives. This is a unique story line and readers will see that while doing good deeds and being kind is definitely something to strive for, a person also needs to have someone to listen and be a support system through life's changes and events.

As a person who is always putting others first, I can totally relate to Ivy. And I know I have a few students who will enjoy reading her story.

I love that Ivy is such a selfless and understanding protagonist, She has so much empathy and uses her own experiences to help her friends with their problems. Ivy is extremely resilient, and tries to work her way through the normal teenage problems that we've all head to deal with! She is a very relatable character who will resonate well with a young people of all backgrounds. I feel that this book gets the correct balance of high-school drama/mystery without the issues feeling forced. The ending was a learning moment that works well for the themes touched on.