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Ivan
Ivan and the American Journey
After Ivan Nazaroff wins the All-Moscow prize in history, he travels to America with other students from his school. But on the first night at Stephen Academy in Vermont, he overhears words that send terror into his heart.
139 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 1989
About the author
Myrna Grant
36 books19 followersMyrna Grant is a published author of children's books and young adult books. Some of the published credits of Myrna Grant include Ivan and the Informer, Ivan and the Moscow Circus (The Ivan Series), Ivan and the Daring Escape (Ivan).
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
February 23, 2016
Set in the era of Gorbachev's glasnost, this is the story of a young Russian boy who wins a trip to America. Ivan is speechless when he is awarded an All-Moscow prize for history and is offered a cultural exchange trip to the USA. As a Christian believer, he has never joined the Young Pioneer movement - which means he could never be considered for such a significant ambassadorial role.
Some spoilers follow...
It appears, however, that Stephen Academy, the sponsoring school in Vermont, has especially requested that one of the ten Russian representatives have a religious background. Even so, Ivan is sure that some excuse will be found to send someone else. But the more he's warned to behave, the more pressure is put on him to join the Young Pioneers and the more he's told to do nothing that would jeopardise his family, his friends or his parents' jobs, the more he realises that the impossible dream may actually be happening to him.
Two stern guardians are assigned to the ten student prizewinners - Ivan is particularly concerned by Comrade Yuri Fedorchuk who has never before been to the West and is therefore certain to be wanting to establish his reputation. Possibly by turning Ivan in for some minor infraction. However it is the more experienced Comrade Olga Drobovna who is in charge of the group. She watches him far too closely at times for comfort.
The trip to the US is long and tiring - but marked by unexpectedly delicious aircraft food. Ivan looks forward to the land where no one has to watch their back when they talk about God.
His sleep is disturbed on arriving in America. He thinks he hears someone using a telephone late at night - trying to contact the FBI in order to defect. Is it a dream? Ivan doesn't know what to do. He doesn't want to draw suspicion on anyone, least of all himself. However, he knows if someone does defect and it is discovered he knew about their intentions, he will be punished as a collaborator. The consequences for his family are unthinkable. In addition, it will cause immense trouble for every member of the group if any of them leave - the trip could be immediately and summarily cancelled.
While debating the problem with himself, Courtney - a surly girl - invites him to church. It eventually transpires, as she warms to him, that she - and others - were all certain he was a fake. That the Soviet government wouldn't dare send a genuine Christian believer to America.
While walking back from church, Ivan is confronted by Georgi, who has fled the Academy for fear he has been turned in by his roommate to Comrades Fedorchuk and Drobovna. Certain that they know of his desire to defect, he wants Ivan's help to contact the FBI.
Ivan is now in a worse predicament and less sure what to do than ever. He suggests that Georgi hide out in the park and rendezvous with him late that night in the school chapel. Confiding his dilemma to Courtney, she helps him make a call to the FBI. Only her quick thinking saves him from desperate trouble when they are caught in the act. The search for the missing Georgi is now on in earnest. To keep the students out of the way, Comrades Fedorchuk and Drobovna send them to town for an ice-cream. They are caught in a sudden violent storm and Ivan takes them to shelter in the local church.
There they are astonished by the prevalence of Bibles - such unscientific and antiquated literature. They open the Bibles to examine the content and are perplexed to find the first chapter describes the creation of the world in scientific order. Someone must have tampered with the myth to get it right, in their view.
Ivan is desperate to find Georgi - how could he survive such a terrible storm? In the end, the FBI finds him first. He tries to bring Georgi to them - but is trapped by Comrade Olga Drobovna. He knows it's curtains for both him and Georgi --- unless he can convince Comrade Drobovna to let Georgi go. The FBI is waiting for him just five minutes down the road.
Fast-moving and deceptively simple story with fascinating insights into an era when the great world powers were in political transition.
Some spoilers follow...
It appears, however, that Stephen Academy, the sponsoring school in Vermont, has especially requested that one of the ten Russian representatives have a religious background. Even so, Ivan is sure that some excuse will be found to send someone else. But the more he's warned to behave, the more pressure is put on him to join the Young Pioneers and the more he's told to do nothing that would jeopardise his family, his friends or his parents' jobs, the more he realises that the impossible dream may actually be happening to him.
Two stern guardians are assigned to the ten student prizewinners - Ivan is particularly concerned by Comrade Yuri Fedorchuk who has never before been to the West and is therefore certain to be wanting to establish his reputation. Possibly by turning Ivan in for some minor infraction. However it is the more experienced Comrade Olga Drobovna who is in charge of the group. She watches him far too closely at times for comfort.
The trip to the US is long and tiring - but marked by unexpectedly delicious aircraft food. Ivan looks forward to the land where no one has to watch their back when they talk about God.
His sleep is disturbed on arriving in America. He thinks he hears someone using a telephone late at night - trying to contact the FBI in order to defect. Is it a dream? Ivan doesn't know what to do. He doesn't want to draw suspicion on anyone, least of all himself. However, he knows if someone does defect and it is discovered he knew about their intentions, he will be punished as a collaborator. The consequences for his family are unthinkable. In addition, it will cause immense trouble for every member of the group if any of them leave - the trip could be immediately and summarily cancelled.
While debating the problem with himself, Courtney - a surly girl - invites him to church. It eventually transpires, as she warms to him, that she - and others - were all certain he was a fake. That the Soviet government wouldn't dare send a genuine Christian believer to America.
While walking back from church, Ivan is confronted by Georgi, who has fled the Academy for fear he has been turned in by his roommate to Comrades Fedorchuk and Drobovna. Certain that they know of his desire to defect, he wants Ivan's help to contact the FBI.
Ivan is now in a worse predicament and less sure what to do than ever. He suggests that Georgi hide out in the park and rendezvous with him late that night in the school chapel. Confiding his dilemma to Courtney, she helps him make a call to the FBI. Only her quick thinking saves him from desperate trouble when they are caught in the act. The search for the missing Georgi is now on in earnest. To keep the students out of the way, Comrades Fedorchuk and Drobovna send them to town for an ice-cream. They are caught in a sudden violent storm and Ivan takes them to shelter in the local church.
There they are astonished by the prevalence of Bibles - such unscientific and antiquated literature. They open the Bibles to examine the content and are perplexed to find the first chapter describes the creation of the world in scientific order. Someone must have tampered with the myth to get it right, in their view.
Ivan is desperate to find Georgi - how could he survive such a terrible storm? In the end, the FBI finds him first. He tries to bring Georgi to them - but is trapped by Comrade Olga Drobovna. He knows it's curtains for both him and Georgi --- unless he can convince Comrade Drobovna to let Georgi go. The FBI is waiting for him just five minutes down the road.
Fast-moving and deceptively simple story with fascinating insights into an era when the great world powers were in political transition.
July 4, 2024
Near the end of the Soviet era, some teenage students from the Soviet Union get to travel abroad on exchange to an academy in the United States (Vermont). The focus for this group of Russian students is to represent their country well, yet one of them wants to defect.
Some of the things in this book that I thought were interesting were the impressions Soviets had of America.
1. Ivan's mom's impression of the United States was a scary place with a lot of crime.
2. Ivan's first impression on an airplane (quote below).
3. Ivan's impression of how unimpeded it is for christians to go to church (quote below).
"The majesty of the still clouds through which they flew filled him with awe at the greatness of God." P. 37
"Of course! You don't think I would walk up to just anybody and ask them if they want to go to church, do you?
Certainly I think you would, Courtney Campbell. This is America! No one will report you or fine you or follow you if you ask someone such a thing!" P. 56
Some of the things in this book that I thought were interesting were the impressions Soviets had of America.
1. Ivan's mom's impression of the United States was a scary place with a lot of crime.
2. Ivan's first impression on an airplane (quote below).
3. Ivan's impression of how unimpeded it is for christians to go to church (quote below).
"The majesty of the still clouds through which they flew filled him with awe at the greatness of God." P. 37
"Of course! You don't think I would walk up to just anybody and ask them if they want to go to church, do you?
Certainly I think you would, Courtney Campbell. This is America! No one will report you or fine you or follow you if you ask someone such a thing!" P. 56
May 14, 2023
The best in the series! As expected, there were several plot points that were unrealistic and the book was overall not very well written, but it was still a very different story to end the series.
Reading the Ivan series has made me pensive, and... a little sad. Probably most of the other few dozen people who rated any book in the series found it buried among old books, in a church library, or at their parents' house—and only read through it because it was so small.
In a decade (I'm being generous), this series will probably never be read again. To think, its legacy fully gone...
My parents both read and loved this series as kids, and they're both from different sides of an ocean. I can only guess if this was widely popular among Christians, or just happened to fall into both of their hands. The series isn't well-written, so I'm not surprised how much it's died down. But the first book was published in 1968, and here I am, reading it in 2023! It's lasted. Good for Ivan. But I doubt it will last for much longer.
Another sad thing... this is one of those series where you expect something wildly different. The Ivan series let me down. I expected action and sharp dialogue and no drawings. This was a primitive and jejune. Especially the last book.
So now this series will be less than a whisper in church libraries and grandparents' bookshelves. I don't want my stories to fade like that. I don't want to fade like that. Do most of us fade like that?
^Just some melancholy, reflective musings from the end of a series. :)
Reading the Ivan series has made me pensive, and... a little sad. Probably most of the other few dozen people who rated any book in the series found it buried among old books, in a church library, or at their parents' house—and only read through it because it was so small.
In a decade (I'm being generous), this series will probably never be read again. To think, its legacy fully gone...
My parents both read and loved this series as kids, and they're both from different sides of an ocean. I can only guess if this was widely popular among Christians, or just happened to fall into both of their hands. The series isn't well-written, so I'm not surprised how much it's died down. But the first book was published in 1968, and here I am, reading it in 2023! It's lasted. Good for Ivan. But I doubt it will last for much longer.
Another sad thing... this is one of those series where you expect something wildly different. The Ivan series let me down. I expected action and sharp dialogue and no drawings. This was a primitive and jejune. Especially the last book.
So now this series will be less than a whisper in church libraries and grandparents' bookshelves. I don't want my stories to fade like that. I don't want to fade like that. Do most of us fade like that?
^Just some melancholy, reflective musings from the end of a series. :)
July 1, 2024
2.5*, my second Ivan book (the last in the series) but I felt it was good that I read it after meeting Ivan in an earlier book. This one was less interesting overall to me. In this book Ivan gets an unexpected chance to travel with nine other Russian students to Vermont on exchange. Ivan continues to bravely share his Christian faith with others and be an example to look to but he doesn’t anticipate overhearing a secret phone call or being called upon to help in a dangerous situation.
pg 76 "But how often Poppa had told Ivan and Katya, 'There will be times when you will have to decide on you(r) own what is the right thing to do. Often there will not be time to come home and talk over problems with the family. At such times, you can be sure that the Lord will guide you. Be sure you keep your attention on the Lord, asking for His help. He will never fail."
suffers from poor editing: pg 10 “I don’t’ know whey you’re…”(double apostrophe, why), pg 76 "...'There will be times when you will have to decide on you(r) own", pg 114 “…many come to know the love of God..” (double period)
pg 76 "But how often Poppa had told Ivan and Katya, 'There will be times when you will have to decide on you(r) own what is the right thing to do. Often there will not be time to come home and talk over problems with the family. At such times, you can be sure that the Lord will guide you. Be sure you keep your attention on the Lord, asking for His help. He will never fail."
suffers from poor editing: pg 10 “I don’t’ know whey you’re…”(double apostrophe, why), pg 76 "...'There will be times when you will have to decide on you(r) own", pg 114 “…many come to know the love of God..” (double period)
November 28, 2022
This is actually really good readable Christian YA fiction. Well developed believable characters, nice pacing, good plot development. I can't say enough good about the whole series. I read these as a boy and still love them!
June 3, 2013
Twelve-year-old Ivan Nazaroff lives in Moscow, Russia, then part of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, with his Poppa, Momma, and sister Katya. It is during the days of Mikhail Gorbachev’s time of glasnost. The Nazaroffs are believers or Christians. Because Ivan is not part of the Communist Young Pioneers, he gets to play soccer only because he is so good, and now his history essay earns him an All-Moscow Prize with a five week school trip to study in America only because the international exchange program requested a religious student to be part of the Moscow group.
Thus, Ivan arrives at Stephen Academy in Vermont with several other students and their two chaperones, Olga Dubrovna and Yuri Fedorchuk. He makes friends with an American girl named Courtney Campbell and even gets to go to an American church service. However, he learns that one of his fellow-students, Georgei Koragin, wishes to defect to America and asks Ivan’s help. If it is known that Ivan assists him, he and his whole family could be severely punished. Ivan wants to go back to Russia to be with his family, so what will he do? Will he tell the chaperones about Georgei, or will he aid the boy at the risk of his own life? And who else might want to defect? I first heard about the “Ivan” Classic Historical Fiction series in 2007 from Timberdoodle, a homeschool resource supplier. The first five in the set are Ivan and the Moscow Circus, Ivan and the Daring Escape, Ivan and the Informer, Ivan and the Hidden Bible, and Ivan and the Secret in the Suitcase, with Ivan and the American Journey as the sixth and final one. Therefore, when I saw it at a used curriculum sale, I picked it up immediately.
The books are designed to give children a glimpse of what it means to be a believer under terrifying conditions of secrecy, fear of discovery, and interrogations, and of the injustice in a communist/atheist society that is part of everyday living in such places. Russia may be very different since the fall of the U. S. S. R., but there are still communist nations on earth, and communist oppression, regardless of the country or generation, remains the same. A couple of religious items with which some people may disagree are that an organ is played in the church service and the preacher is called a pastor. However, Ivan and the American Journey is generally wholesome and filled with adventure, intrigue, and courage. Although it is set in a different culture and historical period, Ivan faces the same struggles which all godly children face. Does he want to please God more than man? Does he believe that God can keep him safe? I would highly recommend the books to kids who enjoy action-packed stories.
Thus, Ivan arrives at Stephen Academy in Vermont with several other students and their two chaperones, Olga Dubrovna and Yuri Fedorchuk. He makes friends with an American girl named Courtney Campbell and even gets to go to an American church service. However, he learns that one of his fellow-students, Georgei Koragin, wishes to defect to America and asks Ivan’s help. If it is known that Ivan assists him, he and his whole family could be severely punished. Ivan wants to go back to Russia to be with his family, so what will he do? Will he tell the chaperones about Georgei, or will he aid the boy at the risk of his own life? And who else might want to defect? I first heard about the “Ivan” Classic Historical Fiction series in 2007 from Timberdoodle, a homeschool resource supplier. The first five in the set are Ivan and the Moscow Circus, Ivan and the Daring Escape, Ivan and the Informer, Ivan and the Hidden Bible, and Ivan and the Secret in the Suitcase, with Ivan and the American Journey as the sixth and final one. Therefore, when I saw it at a used curriculum sale, I picked it up immediately.
The books are designed to give children a glimpse of what it means to be a believer under terrifying conditions of secrecy, fear of discovery, and interrogations, and of the injustice in a communist/atheist society that is part of everyday living in such places. Russia may be very different since the fall of the U. S. S. R., but there are still communist nations on earth, and communist oppression, regardless of the country or generation, remains the same. A couple of religious items with which some people may disagree are that an organ is played in the church service and the preacher is called a pastor. However, Ivan and the American Journey is generally wholesome and filled with adventure, intrigue, and courage. Although it is set in a different culture and historical period, Ivan faces the same struggles which all godly children face. Does he want to please God more than man? Does he believe that God can keep him safe? I would highly recommend the books to kids who enjoy action-packed stories.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews