Customer Reviews

Savvy

5 star:		(68)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(12)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

The Beaumonts are a unique family made up truly talented individuals. As each kid hits the age of thirteen, his or her inherent power comes to light. They call this talent "savvy," and it can be anything. When a Beaumont celebrates that fateful, lucky thirteen, everyone waits with baited breath to see what happens. No matter what, a savvy is one birthday gift you can't return.

They don't know exactly where it comes from, but they do know that it runs down Momma's side of the family. Daddy's a regular guy, happy with his family and content with his job. Meanwhile, Momma's relatives can do all sorts of wacky things. Great-Aunt Jules would step back twenty minutes in time every time she sneezed. Olive, a second cousin, has the ability to melt ice with her glare. Grandpa Bomba creates new places "whenever and wherever" he pleases, such as the stretch of land stuck between Kansas and Nebraska where he lives with his daughter and their family. (They call it Kansaska or Nebransas.) His wife caught radio waves in old glass jars, saving snippets of songs and stories that she could tune into anytime. Now that she's passed away, the family is extremely careful with these containers and treasures the sounds they emit upon a gentle loosening of their lids.

Then there's the immediately family. Momma's perfect, always - that's her savvy. Oldest child Rocket, aged seventeen, is the body electric, able to illuminate rooms during a blackout or teasingly zap a sibling whenever he feels like it. Weather shakes the next oldest boy, fourteen-year-old Fish, whose emotional hurricane can manifest into a real storm. The youngest kids, somber seven-year-old Samson and imaginative three-year-old Gypsy, are years away from getting their savvies, but when the story opens, middle child Mississippi is about to turn thirteen.

Affectionately called Mibs by her family, a nickname created by Gypsy in an attempt to pronounce her sister's name, our beloved narrator is appropriately awkward for her age and anxious for her birthday. She knows something's coming, something good.

Then something bad happens. The night before her birthday, Mibs' father is in a car accident and taken to a hospital. Momma and Rocket rush off to tend to him, leaving the other children in the care of Grandpa Bomba. Instead of having a happy birthday at home, Mibs finds herself at a gathering planned by the pastor's wife, Miss Rosemary. Mibs and her siblings, already worried about their father, now worry that Mibs' savvy will make itself known in public.

When the birthday girl discovers that a Bible salesman's bus came from the direction of the hospital where her father is resting, she impulsively sneaks on board. The stowaway count increases when Fish and Samson decide to get on the bus, as do the pastor's offspring, defiant Bobbi (who has a crush on Rocket) and gentle Will Junior (who has a crush on Mibs).

The salesman starts down the road, oblivious to his new cargo, and Mibs goes from excited to scared in the blink of an eye. They're heading in the opposite direction, away from the hospital rather than towards it! Her savvy, which had presented itself only a short while before, starts playing with her mind, but she tries to keep it a secret.

Mibs looks around and realizes that she's on an unplanned road trip to who-knows-where with two of her brothers, one of whom barely speaks, a meek salesman named Lester that she doesn't know, and the pastor's kids. As unpredictable and unprecedented as the trip may be, one thing's for certain: Mibs will never forget her thirteenth birthday.

Ingrid Law infuses her sweet family-oriented story with mischief, creating a special effect. Whether or not they have special powers, each character is easily distinguishable from the others, including the grown-ups. It's almost as if the kids from the Maggie Valley books by Kerry Madden (Gentle's Holler, etc) were given the powers of the X-Men. The fact that the Beaumonts gain their powers at the age of thirteen is a perfect nod to their coming-of-age, and this book is a treat for all ages.

Savvy is, from start to finish, a delightful journey. This rite of passage is highly recommended.

i picked this book up by chance and bought it after reading the first 10 pages because i didn't want to put it down. Mibs (short for Mississippi) is a wonderful character who turns 13 in the beginning of the story. it is an important age for anyone but especially for the Beaumonts, who find out at 13 what their "savvy" is. her brother Rocket can create electricity. her brother Fish can make hurricanes. her grandfather can move mountains. now it's her turn.

but her father gets into an accident, turning everything upside down and sending them on an adventure that teaches them some hard life lessons.

it's a refreshing story about growing up, about being different, about listening to your voice instead of others around you to figure out who you are. i especially love the message that we shouldn't be in such a hurry to grow up.

the story moves along quickly and vividly due to Ingrid Law's use of language and illiteration:
"like the ticks and tocks of a clock"
"with a zest and a zing and a zeal"
"hurly-burly fluster of truth telling"

the ending is touching but believable, not syrupy or fantastical, which stories like this are in danger of doing. i sincerely hope she'll continue the story and write a series because this one book wasn't enough!

From the first delicious page, I was hooked. SAVVY is full of inspiring, delightful, loveable characters. SAVVY takes you on an amazing bus trip into laughter and magical excitement. I hope this book receives lots of industry buzz and awards because it's amazing and memorable. It's one of my favorite reads for 2008.

I can't wait to read more about these remarkable characters from this very "savvy" author. Excellent debut!

I loved this book, and I loved the main character Mibs. She's a perfect 13-year old character--a little unsure of herself, just discovering her own power, and fun. I highly recommend this story. Makes you want to write on your own arm and share your thoughts with everyone!

My 10 yr old daughter says this book is 10 times better than Haryy Potter. It definitely leaves room for a sequel. Great book!

Mississippi Beaumont can't wait for her 13th birthday, only days away, because that's when she'll officially get her savvy. All the Beaumont's, except Poppa, have a savvy that is uniquely their own. Mama is perfect, Grandpa Bomba makes new land, Rocket controls electricity and Fish can create storms and move water. Trouble is, the savvy is hard to control when it first comes in, and Mississippi, better known as Mibs, is nervous about what will happen at her party.

When her dad ends up in a coma in the hospital after a car accident and her mother leaves the family to be with him, the preacher's wife organizes a birthday party for Mibs, making all the Beaumonts nervous about what will happen on the big day. But the fun really starts when Mibs decides to stow away on a broken down Bible-delivery bus, hoping to reach Salina, Kansas, where she believes she can wake Poppa up. Along for the ride are her older brother Fish, her younger brother Samson, and the preacher's children, Bobbi and Will Junior.

Mibs has a great, down-to-earth voice, and readers will happily follow her as she explores issues of family, friendship, budding romance, and finding the things that are special inside each of us. You may just find yourself looking for your own special savvy. You can also look for games and a discussion guide at the publisher's Web site, [...].

Mississippi Beaumont, or Mibs as she prefers, seems to have a typical family. She lives with a mother and a father, a grandfather, two older brothers, one younger brother and a baby sister somewhere in between Kansas and Nebraska. But that's about as close to ordinary as they get.

A "savvy" is an extraordinary, unique, out-of-this-world, unbelievable talent that goes beyond a person's wildest imagination --- almost like a superpower. Receiving a savvy on one's 13th birthday is something that runs in Mibs's family. Her mom has one, as does her grandfather and almost all of her ancestors on her mom's side. Her two older brothers, Rocket and Fish, are still learning how to control their savvy. Rocket conducts his own electricity, and when he gets upset, light bulbs burst, stoplights crack, and other unfortunate and hard-to-explain events occur. Fish controls the weather --- or, rather, he's learning to control it. When he gets riled up, storms brew with wild wind and pounding rain. He caused a hurricane on his 13th birthday, thus the family now lives as far away as possible from large lakes and oceans.

The day before Mibs's birthday, her dad is involved in a horrible car accident and is in a coma at the hospital. Immediately, her mom and Rocket drive over to be with him. The preacher's wife hears the news and quickly comes to help care for the rest of the Beaumont family, much to their annoyance. Mibs isn't very fond of the preacher's wife or their kids, including 16-year-old gum-chewing Bobbi and her 14-year-old brother, Will Junior. And to make matters worse, the preacher's wife wants to cheer everyone up by throwing Mibs a huge party. A public party on a Beaumont's 13th birthday is a disaster waiting to happen.

Mibs wakes up on her big day mixed with nervous excitement for her savvy to arrive and desperate worry for her sick father. She convinces herself that her new savvy will somehow be able to help her dad get better, if only she can get to the hospital. Later that day, at the church for her impromptu party, she sees her chance. She sneaks aboard a pink bus belonging to the traveling Bible salesman, knowing the vehicle will be returning to the city where her father is. Fish and Samson also clamber on board, along with Bobbi and Will Junior. The stowaways have no idea of the magnitude of the journey they are about to embark on, the excitement they will encounter, the friendships they will form, or the enlightenment they will experience. And no one, not even Mibs herself, could imagine how special her incredible savvy will be.

SAVVY is Ingrid Law's first novel, and her own writing talents have burst out shining bright and clear. Not only is this story fun, hilarious, relatable and enduring, Law manages to cleverly sneak in words of award-winning wisdom that will help any person find some happiness within himself or herself, no matter what age. Her writing style and voice speak volumes through each of her unique characters, especially Mibs: "Maybe it's like that for everyone, I thought. Maybe we all have other people's voices running higgledy-piggledy through our heads all the time. I thought how often my poppa and momma were there inside my head with me, telling me right from wrong. Or how the voices of Ashley Bing and Emma Flint sometimes got stuck under my skin, taunting me and making me feel low, even when they weren't around. I began to realize how hard it was to separate out all the voices to hear the single, strong one that came just from me."

This is a wonderful, entertaining novel, and readers will be waiting impatiently for Ingrid Law's next special gift of storytelling.

--- Reviewed by Chris Shanley-Dillman, author of FINDING MY LIGHT and THE BLACK POND

Savvy satisfied both my eight-year-old daughter's desire for magical realism and my own for an enjoyable story to read aloud with her. Mibs has a strong narrative voice yet is still believable as a thirteen-year-old girl.

It could be a great set-up for a series, but it's a gem on its own.

The idea behind Savvy is pitch-perfect: a family where the leap from childhood into the wild unknown of adulthood is even wilder and more unknown than usual. You hit adolescence in this family, and you acquire a "savvy" -- a mysterious, magical talent. A very specific, and often very strange one. (I loved the Grandma who could save radio broadcasts in canning jars.) The characters are charming and individual, the situations and dialog are funny...so why only three stars?

I don't think I've ever read a book where a young character stops more times to suddenly contemplate at heartfelt length that her life has changed, or that she's growing up, or that such-and-such a moment has some special meaning that she'll always remember and she'll never be the same. It bogs down the narrative terribly. Worse yet, it's unnecessary. We get it! It's a coming of age story! We understand why these moments are important, and we see the characters change and grow. But to be constantly told what we're seeing kills the suspension of disbelief, not to mention the light, funny rhythm of the storytelling. I hope this obviously talented writer will trust herself and her readers a little more next time around.

Gold Star Award Winner!

This was a really fun book to read.

Mississippi, aka Mibs, and her family each get a magical gift, called a savvy, on their thirteenth birthday. Rocket, Mibs's brother, has the savvy of being able to control electricity. He is a lot like those comic book heroes, good-looking with electric sparks coming off of his hands. At thirteen, her other brother, Fish, found out that he can control weather, especially causing water storms. So at thirteen the kids become homeschooled and have to learn how to control their special abilities.

When the story opens, Mibs is two days away from turning thirteen herself. She is excited about her special birthday when her father is in a horrible twelve-car accident on the highway. He ends up in a coma in a hospital in Salina, Kansas.

When she gets her savvy, she is being taken care of by the minister's wife and all she can think of is how to get to her Poppa. Mibs, Fish, her little brother, Samson, and two of the minister's kids run away to find Poppa. SAVVY is the story of their adventures crossing Nebraska and Kansas, trying to control savvys, which is called scumbling, learning to see the good in people, and, of course, the courage it takes to act on your ideals and love.

I loved the writing in this book. The author uses a lot of figurative language. Besides metaphor and simile, Ingrid Law also uses a lot of alliteration in the telling of the story. Phrases such as pushing-pulling waves, itch and scritch of birthday buzz, or how about a gaggle of flat-footed goslings. It was remarkable how the author could use language to make this story even better than it already was.

So if you want to read a really good story about growing up or if you just love the sound of language, then this is the book for you. Have a really rad read!

Reviewed by: Marta Morrison