The Elephant in the Ivy

by Alexander Greengaard

"An entertaining romp that celebrates friendship, performance, and the controlled chaos of university life." — Kirkus Reviews

The Elephant in the Ivy is a whimsical and irreverent spy novel—of sorts—in the beautiful and mysterious New England college underground.

Alison Ashe is a junior at Bauer College. A scholarship kid, a theatre major, strapped for cash and even more strapped for time; she’s easily annoyed and something about her privileged peers really wigs her out. But unlike most of her peers, Alison has an outlet where starting on third base doesn’t do anyone any favors. Ancient and secret, Bauer is home to a spy game of sorts. A game where all that matters is that your wits are sharp and you’re willing to take big risks. And, of course, who you trust.

Praise for The Elephant in the Ivy:

"It's a real book!" -Danyelle Khmara, Arizona Public Media

"A rollicking heist of a book. Alison Ashe will trick you, and you'll thank her for it." -Grace Olsen, WMHC Radio

Written with support from Pima Open Digital Press, an open educational resource initiative at Pima Community College.

Genres: Young Adult

191 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 25, 2025

About the author

Alexander Greengaard, MFA is an Instructor/Lecturer in the IBEST Program at Pima Community College. He works with students who have faced barriers to education and fights to break those barriers through integrated education and training initiatives, partnerships between basic education and college trade certification programs, and developing open educational materials. Alexander is also the founder of Troubadour, an arts education organization that provides theatre programs to economically marginalized families.

Reviews

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

ARC for review. Published October 25, 2025.

3 stars

Alison Ashe is a junior scholarship student at Brown. She and her mother are from town; he mother works a low wage job in retail and Alison is part of the theatre department which is doing “Hamlet” this semester.

Alison is also part of a campus-wide game which combines capture the flag and spy vs. spy and the game makes her life very exciting and also introduces her to new people, like teammate Paige, a former gymnast. She’s also trying to nail down her major; will Alison be able to succeed in the game and make the tough decisions she needs to?

I loved the idea of the game, but to actually play would stress me out beyond belief. I have to believe there are versions of this being played at a number of college campuses. I liked the sections where the students are preparing for the play. From reading some of the material before the book I understand that the text is supposed to be free for…..someone. I wasn’t clear. Some type of student access. Maybe at community colleges? Just wonder how much a CC student will want to read about Ivy League students. The book was fine.

[Mag · Rating 5 out of 5]

Epic ending

[naomi ray · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF - its just so bad omg 🤦‍♀️

I feel guilty for ruining this books rating but i have been taking notes during reading just to make this review more honest.

From the very start you are thrown into this rivarly game in between school clubs, i had no idea what was going on until i got to 21% of the book and then the main character explained the game, i must admit that the whole ancient indian chess like game was hella cool but i was just so confused at first.

Also the writing, sure its not terrible, but there were too many similes, i was just non stop getting thrown out of the flow of the book because it kept making me think much deeper than it had to be.

Uhm another concerning thing is that this book is aimed for children, but theres a scene where the two main characters talk about the play hamlet and how its funny (specifically the characters in it dying and stabbing each other) im not sure if this is the author inserting his humor or smthn but just not for me.

Overall bad read i couldn't even finish it, again sorry to the author for ruining the high rating but it had to be done

[Kimberly Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Elephant in the Ivy is a fun and engaging novel that mixes campus life, mystery, and humor. It follows Alison, a college student turned spy, as she navigates secrets, ambition, and friendship. Perfect for those who enjoy a quick and easy read with relatable characters and surprising twists.

Thank you to the author, Prima Open Digital Press and NetGalley for the digital ARC.

[lovelettersandlore · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book surprised me in the best way. I went in not knowing what to expect, and ended up completely wrapped up in the quiet mystery and the emotional layers woven into the story. I kept wanting to read “one more chapter” because the unraveling of the story is so soft, slow, and elegant. It’s the kind of book that feels like a secret you’re being trusted with. And by the end? I was honestly sitting there like… okay, that was really good.

[Peter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ocean 11, meets a student society of James Bond spy craft, and University student stresses mixed together. Starts well, and as needed in this sort of genre a great reveal at the end. Set in Ivy League Brown, but accessible for all. (Which in part is the authors intent.) There’s lots of humour, and inventiveness as the student ‘Spy club’ factions fight it out to be the cream of the crop. Deceit is the name of the game, as is handing in assignments on time, and maybe the whole performance would have Shakespeare turning in his grave. But then again my fair companions, he’s not adverse to comedy. Thank you to Pima Open Digital Press and NetGalley for the ARC. The views expressed are all mine, freely given.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very fun book to read! The first chapter was a little hard to grasp what was going on, but as soon as I started reading the second chapter, it made sense and became a delight to read! I really enjoyed the author's use of a playlist of songs to complement the narrative in the book. A very creative short novel indeed!

[Andy Cretcher · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the kind of book that reminds you reading can be both smart and super fun. Greengaard’s writing is witty, breezy, and will make you laugh at all the right moments. It’s a playful, charming read that never tries too hard — the literary equivalent of a friend who’s effortlessly cool but still happy to joke around with you. It is fun, quirky, and an easy yes.

[Veronica Macias · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one wasn’t totally my kind of book, but I still found myself drawn in. The writing is really thoughtful, and there’s this quiet, heavy mood that fits the story perfectly. I liked how flawed and human the characters felt especially the main character, who’s just trying to figure herself out while everything around her feels uncertain. Some parts moved a little slow for me, but there were moments that really hit. Overall I give this book a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ stars!

[Hudson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a copy of this novel from a goodreads giveaway, but for those interested it is also available online

The Elephant in the Ivy is described as a spy novel of sorts in which students at Brown University compete in a game similar to capture the flag. The main characters are part of the Theater department, who are notorious for coming in last place every year. The Engineers, on the other hand, are the reigning champions, but have a target on their back as a result of it. The protagonist of the novel is Alison Ashe, a scholarship student involved in too many activities (which is helpful for character building, but not for the plot).

I had a lot of questions while reading this book. There wasn't a lot going on but at the same time there was enough to leave me confused. It felt like a lot of elements were just thrown in and lacked the development needed to leave an impact. For example, Alison's mom is a diabetic and a hoarder. There are very few scenes in the novel that explore this "who mothers whom" dynamic and honestly didn't do anything to improve the plot. It kind of highlights how Alison is a scholarship student and resents her classmates who got into Brown because of legacy. But I think the book could have done just as fine without this subplot.

Another thing that bothered me was the dialogue. It felt like the characters were talking at each other rather than holding an actual conversation. Dialogue is a very strong tool that authors use to develop character relationships while also driving the plot along. However, it was very bland in my opinion and didn't help to explore these characters.

Now, take everything I said and throw it out the window. This novel is actually very clever when taken into consideration that this is a companion novel to Open ELA: A Complete Course in Reading and Language Arts. Greengaard explains in the introduction that it is designed with lessons about literature in mind and for adults who are looking to get into reading. With this in mind, it makes everything about the book make sense. According to the introduction you can read the book as is (which is what I did) or read it with the "Interactive Chapters" section (I actually don't know where this is and couldn't find it).

Overall, I think that this book is perfect for beginner readers, but I wouldn't recommend it to advanced readers. I didn't enjoy the plot (except for the little enemies to lovers kind of subplot but that came out of left field) but I respect Greengaard's goal in writing it.

[Sam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Have you ever looked at a college campus and wondered what really happens after the libraries close and the lights dim? The Elephant in the Ivy made me think of my own university days, when everything felt urgent and absurd at the same time and even small risks carried theatrical weight. Alexander Greengaard captures that feeling with a story that treats academia like a stage and student life like a carefully choreographed caper.

Alison Ashe is not spying for governments but for something far more precarious. Belonging. As a scholarship student and theatre major at the fictional Bauer College, she moves through privilege and pressure with a sharp eye and sharper wit. The secret campus wide game at the heart of the novel is confusing at first, much like being dropped into a new social hierarchy with no map, but once it clicks, the logic feels delightfully inevitable. Who would not believe that students already juggling exams and productions would also take deception as a competitive sport?

The novel is playful, sometimes chaotic, and occasionally uneven, yet it leans into those qualities as part of its charm. It reads like a whispered secret passed between friends who trust you to keep up. By the end, the clever reveal feels earned. This is less a spy thriller than a love letter to performance, friendship, and the strange intensity of learning who you are while pretending to be someone else.

[Kathi Heiber · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gave me an insight to present day vernacular and campus life / Lively dialogue , and clever observations - Someone else complained about the similes- but I found them well within the bounds of flowing with the narrative. I only know the Elvis Costello song on the playlist - so you know I am from another generation- Someone will have to send me the playlist on 8 Track so I can catch all the musical references….. ( I am kidding- I only need a Cassette tape…….). I hope this is well received as a teaching vehicle=. I found it much better than a lot of contemporary fiction - being published today by mainstream houses- that are so grossly overwritten / and overly dramatic that they produce a gag reflex from the overwritten descriptives. This book was a pleasant diversion to read from some of the main market drivel……

[Tianne Shaw · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well what a surprise not the story I was thinking but better.

Take a normal college with theatrical students and ivy leagues. Now add Hamlet and an elephant. What a mix but also a great read that was hooking me into it. Great YA book and well makes you think differently about Hamlet.

[George Minarik · Rating 5 out of 5]

Alison Ashe is a senior at Bauer, who made it the hard way. She grew up in a broken home; very poor, without a father and a mother who is dependent upon her for almost everything. She has earned scholarships and works at a bar part time to somehow financially struggle through. She realized early in life that she needed to be tougher than everyone else both mentally and physically. Alexander Greengaard’s novel is an exploration of her inner-life during her senior year where she completes her courses, stars as Ophelia in the university play and wins an improbable victory in an extraordinary campus game. It is a story of combat, friendship, compassion, music and ultimately personal triumph. You will want to meet Alison.

[Tammy · Rating 4 out of 5]

📚The Elephant in the Ivy
✍🏻Alexander Greengaard
Blurb:
"An entertaining romp that celebrates friendship, performance, and the controlled chaos of university life." — Kirkus Reviews

The Elephant in the Ivy is a whimsical and irreverent spy novel—of sorts—in the beautiful and mysterious New England college underground.

Alison Ashe is a junior at Bauer College. A scholarship kid, a theatre major, strapped for cash and even more strapped for time; she’s easily annoyed and something about her privileged peers really wigs her out. But unlike most of her peers, Alison has an outlet where starting on third base doesn’t do anyone any favors. Ancient and secret, Bauer is home to a spy game of sorts. A game where all that matters is that your wits are sharp and you’re willing to take big risks. And, of course, who you trust.

Praise for The Elephant in the Ivy:

"It's a real book!" -Danyelle Khmara, Arizona Public Media

"A rollicking heist of a book. Alison Ashe will trick you, and you'll thank her for it." -Grace Olsen, WMHC Radio

Written with support from Pima Open Digital Press, an open educational resource initiative at Pima Community College.
My Thoughts:
The characters are the heart of the book. each one charming, quirky, and instantly relatable, .Alison is also part of a campus-wide game which combines capture the flag and spy vs. spy and the game makes her life very exciting and also introduces her to new people, like teammate Paige, a former gymnast. She’s also trying to nail down her major; will Alison be able to succeed in the game and make the tough decisions she needs to? It follows Alison, a college student turned spy, as she navigates secrets, ambition, and friendship. Alison Ashe is not spying for governments but for something far more precarious. Belonging. As a scholarship student and theatre major at the fictional Bauer College, she moves through privilege and pressure with a sharp eye and sharper wit. The secret campus wide game at the heart of the novel is confusing at first, much like being dropped into a new social hierarchy with no map, but once it clicks, the logic feels delightfully inevitable. I would recommend The Elephant in the Ivy to readers who want something smart.
Thanks NetGalley, and Author Alexander Greengaard for the advanced copy of "The Elephant in the Ivy" I am leaving my voluntary review in appreciation.
#NetGalley
#AlexanderGreengaard
#TheElephantintheIvy
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[Literary Reviewer · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Elephant in the Ivy by Alexander Greengaard is a playful campus spy story that blends secret games, academic life, and personal loss. The book follows Alison Ashe, a theater student at an Ivy League school, who plays a hidden espionage game between departments. What starts as lighthearted intrigue grows into something darker. Stakes rise. Friendships strain. Death becomes real. The story moves through classrooms, quads, dorms, and late-night walks while asking how much performance and pretense shape real life.

I enjoyed the writing style a lot. It felt loose and confident. The voice has humor and warmth. I laughed often. I also felt a pit in my stomach more than once. The dialogue snaps. The inner thoughts feel honest and messy. I liked how the book never tried to sound smart for the sake of it. It trusted the reader. The pacing worked for me. Some scenes flew by. Others lingered in a good way. I felt close to Alison.

I kept thinking about performance and identity when reading this book. Everyone in the story plays a role. Students act like spies. Professors play at authority. Institutions play at fairness. The game mirrors real power structures and privilege. That resonated with me. The book talks about gender and class without lecturing. It just shows you. I felt anger at times. I felt joy too. I liked that the book respected fun and silliness while still taking emotions seriously. That balance is hard, and the author pulled it off.

I would recommend The Elephant in the Ivy to readers who want something smart. It is great for people easing back into reading. It is also good for students and educators who enjoy stories about school life with a twist. If you like humor, secret worlds, and characters who feel real and flawed, this book is worth your time.

[Scovia · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Elephant in the Ivy is an engaging and entertaining story that blends typical campus shenanigans, relationship drama, and deeper family issues connected to health. At the center of it all is Alison, who loves music and is determined to build the best possible future for herself, while also navigating the unexpected twist of being a spy.

Alison and her friends are constantly swept up in one adventure after another. It feels like their lives never slow down, with new situations and responsibilities always demanding their attention.

I found this book genuinely hilarious. The author has a wild and sharp sense of humor, and reading it often feels like listening to a conversation happening in real time. There were several moments that made me laugh out loud, especially lines like, “You have a very slappable face,” which completely caught me off guard.

For me, the humor is easily the strongest part of this book. It’s top-tier and consistently entertaining, and it’s what kept me turning the pages.

What also stood out was how realistic the characters’ lives felt. From dealing with a sick mother, to working to earn money to stay in school, to being surrounded by super-rich friends, these contrasts made the story feel grounded and relatable despite its more outrageous elements.

The story exists in two very different worlds at once, and it’s impressive how well the author balances them. The imagination behind it is wild and genuinely creative. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who enjoys escaping reality through reading, because this is absolutely a story worth picking up.

[Alexander Greengaard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Many, many thanks to my friends and family for making this possible. Thank you for reading and laughing with me. Thank you for finding all the typos. And thank you, thank you, thank you for helping make it possible to create a good, free book for classrooms everywhere.

Just so we're all on the same page, a free edition is available via Pima Open Digital Press, an open educational resource initiative at Pima Community College. You can get it at elephantbook.net. If you happen to want to buy it (because you want it on a kindle or you like the smell of books), that's also very neat. And if you do that, we'll buy a copy for a classroom.

This book is for classrooms. I want it to be a companion to lessons about literature. I want teachers to be able to assign it to the whole class without having to worry about the budget or how to get a hold of copies. I want adult learners working on their high school equivalency diplomas to have something that helps them practice that doesn’t feel daunting or stuffy. I want teachers to reuse and remix this so that you can have it for your own classroom purposes- just make sure to include a note that I was the original author.

This book is also for my friends, students, and family. If you know me personally, you’re the audience I’m writing this for. I hope it makes you laugh. I hope it makes you want to keep reading. If you know anyone who says “I want to get back into reading,” I hope you’ll tell them that your friend wrote a book and it’s light and easy to read and you should try it because it’s free anyway.

[Ann · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

So, I will start off by caveating my review with the fact that this just wasn't quite my kind of book: the stakes were pretty low, no dark secrets on this campus, and the protagonist honestly annoyed me a bit with her constant pop culture references and sheer theatricality, but to be fair, Alison is a theater major, so it kind of tracks. Also, the author mentioned in an opening letter that his main goal with this book was to have an easy to read novel that was exciting and could engage both classroom readers and adults who were trying to get back into reading, and I do think that minus the first chapter of this novel, he succeeded. (The first chapter was kind of confusing for me because it just tossed you straight into the spy game with no explanations, which is somewhat exciting, and everything is explained by the second chapter).

The college setting is richly detailed, the characters are charming students that feel like real college students, and Alison has to juggle both the spy game, friendships, the upcoming Hamlet production, finances, and parenting her own mother. Alison does come off as preachy and too sure of herself in many an instance, but she is pretty human, so I should probably cut her some slack.

This would make a good classroom read or just something light for someone looking for a fun college romp.

[Bek Bound By Books · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with this advanced reading copy in exchange for a fair and honest review.

After a beautiful introduction from the author, the reader is immediately thrown into the action of Chapter 1. Though we are introduced to a format with a fast pace and interesting setting, the reader doesn’t know enough about the characters or terminology being used to understand what’s happening making this chapter a bit of a slog to get through. If you’re a fan of mystery like I am, you would push through anyways. I would think of Chapter 1 as more as a prologue though as Chapter 2 starts breaking things down a bit more.

Even after a vague breakdown, the reader is left guessing throughout. The timeline isn’t clear, the metaphor of ‘the game’ feels pretty dense… but there are things about that theme of social hierarchy that I really ended up liking. The character’s thoughts and feelings around this game are really what bring this book up a notch.

I enjoyed the writing, it was pretty witty and I found myself wanting to highlight and share more than I typically would with other books, but I found the plot lacking and a lot of chapters to be repetitive, making my star rating a solid 3 star book. It has high-highs and medium-lows, averaging just okay.

[Leo · Rating 3 out of 5]

I confess that I am left in total confusion by this story. ‘The Elephant in the Ivy’ is set in Bauer College, an American University, and as such, it is aimed at teenagers in education. The author states that his specific aim is not to come over as stuffy, and he somehow manages to conflate Shakesperean criticism with this zany tale. The story begins as the main protagonist Alison Ashe, who is majoring in theatre, undertakes a daring mission as part of an elaborate spy game that exists within her college. The reader is immediately thrown into the action, without any explanation as to what is happening. Add to that the short sentences, the ‘in’ phrases of youth culture, the slapstick comedy and burlesque, and one is left totally confused. The sentences are short and snappy, and full of’ phrases ‘that I did not understand. What is a line-backer, or what does it mean to be in full Costello mood? I had been drawn into this tale by the expressed wish of the author to make education widely available to the disadvantaged, but I am left wondering whether he underestimates them by making everything, like Alison Ashe herself, appear to be just a big joke. Forgive me if I have failed to understand what was going on because of my different culture, or my more advanced age, but I really have to say that, sadly, this book was not for me.

[sureshot · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book started well. There was immediate immersion into the perspective of Alison Ashe. She is in the mist of some kind of mission. Her character seems odd, in a good way, with rather nerdy tastes and a little sarcasm to her personality. The other characters in this book would prove to be solid. They had their own quirks and personalities. The storyline started well, but then it faded a bit for me. I think it was a bit too soft, even for a young adult audience. After the first chapter, I never really felt that tense. It was more. The interactions and friendships between the characters carried the story. I think this would give the book some appeal for people who like books that are more about kids coming of age. Overall, I think it has appeal to a limited audience, but it could do good with people who are more into characters and personal interactions than storylines.

[Kathleen Covington · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought the concept was definitely interesting- the whole spy game sounded like a lot of fun, and I majored in musical theatre in college myself, so a theatre protagonist was right up my alley! Where it missed the mark, though, was tone. It just felt a bit too juvenile for a college setting, with the exception of when Alison was with her mother. It wasn't that the book is poorly written, it just read more like a middle grades book. I understand that the author wanted it to be more accessible for less confident readers, so it may very well be that it's just not the book for me! I feel like maybe it would have landed better in a middle school setting.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! Really engaging, yet easy to read. It was like following your best friend around getting to watch their antics. The characters are well developed, and I just love their friendship. I definitely recommend this book to people who want something easy to get into that will make you want to keep reading. So fun!

[Nika · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fantastic book full of twists and turns! Fantastic main characters, a funky professor, and a perfectly love/hateable antagonist?!? There’s tension and jokes and a road trip! What more could you want from a cozy academia mystery?

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun read, and I love the playlist!

[Bnz · Rating 5 out of 5]

For now. Just a brief sketch of a review:

Fun (and funny) novel(la) about university life of a brilliant scholarship student from underprivileged background in a hyper-elite Ivy League university. It is about finding one's way, fighting prejudice, finding true friendship, music, absorbing cloak-and-dagger game, and why Hamlet can be staged as comedy - all that packed in barely 150 pages that start fast and culminate in a breakneck finale, with an occasional gut punch.

And, I almost forgot, you witness the world record instance of Method acting (it was not mentioned by name, but you will recognize it.)

Be sure to visit the author's website.