IVALEENA

by Brenda K. Thompson

Eighteen-year-old Ivy Lee wanted a life beyond The Glens.
Then a carnival man gave her a new name.
Ivaleena. The Most Beautiful Girl in the World.
The crowds loved her. Ivy began to disappear.

In the Kentucky Appalachians of the 1940s, Ivy Lee longs for something beyond the mountains. She carries a sketchbook and the quiet hope that someone, somewhere, will see what she can create.

Then the Great Meridian Show rolls into Culpepper.

Soon Ivy is standing in the lights, admired by strangers, loved by crowds, and printed on posters from town to town.

But the farther she travels from home, the harder it becomes to remember the girl she used to be.

Because the world has fallen in love with Ivaleena.
And Ivaleena was never really Ivy.

Tender, atmospheric, and deeply human, Ivaleena is a historical literary novel about identity, longing, art, and the quiet courage it takes to claim your own life.

From Brenda K. Thompson, 2026 Next Generation Indie Book Awards First Place Grand Prize Winner for Fiction for Alice Anyway.

Also by Brenda K. Thompson: Alice Anyway, A Feed Sack Dress for Sadie, and Child H.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction

355 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 16, 2026

About the author

I’m Brenda K. Thompson, Grand Prize-winning author of Alice Anyway and the Appalachian novels Ivaleena, A Feed Sack Dress for Sadie, and Child H. I write emotionally resonant fiction about resilience, identity, belonging, and the quiet courage it takes to claim one’s own life. My stories are meant to be lived in.

My debut novel, Alice Anyway, was named the 2026 Next Generation Indie Book Awards First Place Grand Prize Winner for Fiction. It also won First Novel (70,000–90,000 words) and was named a finalist in Female Empowerment. The novel became a #1 Amazon Bestseller in Women’s Historical Fiction, Historical Literary Fiction, and Women’s Literary Fiction.

Ivaleena unfolds beneath the canvas of a traveling carnival, where illusion and identity become difficult to separate. A Feed Sack Dress for Sadie follows a stolen child who survives to build a life of her own. My newest novel, Child H, begins in 1898 Appalachia with six-year-old Hannah Campbell and a house gone strange.

Before writing fiction, I spent years on Wall Street and later founded Special “Finds…” Unique Property Marketing. Both taught me how deeply story and place shape the way we see the world.

My husband, Jim, nearly always finds his way into one of my characters. Sometimes the two of us appear together, though we may be the only ones who recognize us.

I’m grateful for every reader who enters these stories, spends time with the people inside them, and carries something of them away.

Reviews

[Jan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this, it is a delightful novel about a young woman from Rural Kentucky in the early part of the 20th century, who longs for more than her simple, predictable rural life. When a carnival visits town she lands a job, not really knowing what it will involve, but hoping she can put her drawing and painting talents to good use. However she is recruited as part of the carnival parade, portraying a character called Ivaleena. Her days at the carnival make a fascinating and very enjoyable coming of age story with warmth and heart and no smut or crudeness. I really enjoyed the authors writing, gentle and captivating. Will read more by this author.

[Regina Rohlfing · Rating 5 out of 5]

Petfect!!!

Definitely one of the best books I've ever read. It has everything that anyone could ask for. It flows so smoothly, you'll forget it's just a story.

[Linda Thompson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book resonated with me. I couldn’t put it down and I didn’t want to. With emotion raw and deeply felt, the story pulls you in completely. Brenda K. Thompson’s writing is beautifully engrossing. Her introduction to the world of a traveling carnival in the 40s and how Ivaleena persevered in it was compelling. I felt like I lived every moment of it.

LP

[L's of Kauai · Rating 2 out of 5]

An 18 year old Appalacian girl/woman is wanting more than the life she is experiencing with her mother. She joins a traveling fair/circus meeting the various characters and learning more about
who she is while the circus tries to transform her whatever they need her to be. She is also an artist.
Throughout the book, it is hinted that something shady is taking place at the circus once most families have left and it's just men around. However, nothing is ever really revealed about this. I was waiting for more to be revealed thinking that was going to be a big part of the plot but nothing ever materialized. Meanwhile, the main character's storyline just kept going on and on.
Just not my kind of book ... wouldn't read another by this author.

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Relevant Southern Fiction

Mg parents were born and raised in Kentucky. I was born in Ohio, raised in Indiana and moved to Michigan as an adult. My father followed work, opting to not work in a coal mine. I can vouch for the lifestyle discribed in this book. I remember spending summers with my grandparents in Kentucky. I loved reading every detail. At age 67, I remember the stories I heard from my parents about growing up in Kentucky. Thank you, Ms. Thompson, well done

[JAMES D · Rating 5 out of 5]

WOW… an incredibly well-written book. Each paragraph felt like a living, moving picture. I didn’t just read this story, I felt it. I found myself completely drawn in, not wanting to put it down, and not wanting it to end. There’s something so immersive about Ms. Thompson’s writing that you feel like you’re right there, living it alongside the characters. A truly moving read. Bravo, Ms. Thompson. 

[B. Suzanne Murray · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the characters, but the pace of this book was too slow for me. The descriptions of the smells were in there way too often. I wanted more descriptions of what was actually happening at the carnival and more descriptions of what exactly was involved in all the parades.

[Joyce Maree · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved It

This is my second book from Brenda Thompson. She has such a way of pulling you into a story. A page turner for me with every spare moment I had I was reading her book. I cannot wait to pick up another title.

[Ellyn Lippman · Rating 2 out of 5]

it was an easy read. Not a reach out and grab you book. Nice story.