Savvy

The Beaumont family is just a tad different. How different? Well, let's see, their mom is literally 'perfect,' their grandpa may or may not have created states by increasing land area in his youth, and the eldest brother in the family can blow out light bulbs with electrical surges faster than you can say "How many..." These powers are called savvies, and each Beaumont gets his or her special savvy on their 13th birthday. Mibs Beaumont is anxiously awaiting that birthday when her family gets devastating news that her father has been in a horrible car accident and is in a coma. The day she turns 13, she sets off on a trip with a ragtag team of folks to go save her father, thinking that her new savvy will help her.

This is a great story, one with a lot of heart and excitement. The plot is fun and bouncy, in a good way, with a lot of lovely characters. Even side characters are strong in this book, such as Rocket and Miss Rosemary. Mibs is a nifty narrator, one who has a very interesting voice that captures the reader's attention. There is humor and light in this story as well as serious, deep moments and ones that tug at your emotions. Anyone who is a fan of road adventures, family stories, or tales of people with neat powers should give Savvy a try.

Savvy is a book about a girl named Mibs who deals with her savvy. A savvy is a special power/ability you get when you are thirteen. The really special part is, it’s only in Mibs family. On the day of Mibs birthday her Father is in a coma from a severe car crash and is at a hospital with her Mother and older brother, Rocket. Mibs hitches a delivery truck to go to the hospital to try to awake her Dad with her savvy. Mibs other brothers come too, along with friends that don’t know about Mibs’ family secret. They go on a huge adventure driving their way to the hospital. Making new friends, a little romance, fights leading to secrets being told. How will Mibs cure her Father? Will her secret be confessed? Read this adventure filled book to find out.

Savvy is a great read for teens, always a cliffhanger that makes you want to read even more. You will fall in love with the characters in Savvy. Ingrid Law does an amazing job giving each character their own personality and picture. It’s also a heart warming book about Mibs determination for curing her Father and her love for family and friends. I recommend this book to teens our age.

Reader reviewed by Joyce Lansky

I absolutely loved Ingrid Law's Savvy! This is the story about a group of children who travel by bus with a wimpy man and a waitress. Members of the Beaumont family have special powers that appear at the age of 13 that add interest and excitement to the journey. The author cleverly allows the reader a peek into several character's heads through Mibbs, who is able to read one's thoughts through drawings or tatoos on their skin. This is a must read with highly developed characters, a beautiful voice, and strong plot.

Reader reviewed by Misty

This is
one of the most engaging stories/narrators I have read in awhile. I
tried hard to think of something I didn;t like, just for some balance
(not because I am such a negative person), and I still have yet to come
up with something. There's a great magical realism/tall-tale feel to
it, which is refreshing in a ya book.



Savvy is the story of Mibs (Mississippi) Beaumont and her rather
unusual family. At 13, every member of the Beaumont family discovers
they have a "savvy," a special power of some sort. Mibs' brother, Fish,
can manipulate the weather (he caused a hurricane on his 13th
birthday), and her brother Rocket manipulates electrcity (his 13th
birthday was pretty unusual, too). Mibs' father is the only member of
the Beaumont family with no special powers, having married in. When he
is involved in a terrible car accident the day before Mibs herself
turns 13, Mibs stops wishing for a grand, mind-blowing savvy and wishes
instead for something that will help her save her father. With two of
her brothers and her pastors kids in two, Mibs leaves her tiny
community in the middle of nowhere, between Kansas and Nebraska (or
Kansaska-Nebransas, as they call it -- Kansaska Monday-Wednesday,
Nebransas Thursday-Saturday) to get to her father and work her savvy.
The resulting story is a discovery of self for each character, from
their own talents and savvies, to their loves and feelings and inner
stength.



I know I made that sound really cheesy, but it's not. Ingrid Law
deals with some heavy stuff in a light and engaging manner. The
language and Mibs' narration is absolutely perfect. It's charming and
funny and unusual. It's addictive, begging to be read aloud. The
alliteration and silliness of the language may irritate some people,
but I adored it. I don't see how it's possible not to fall in love with
Mibs and the Beaumonts, and all of the peripheral characters.

Savvy is definitely a must read!

Reader reviewed by GRgenius

A heart-warming tale of the not so ordinary Beaumont family and their journey in uncovering the un-ordinary in others. Sound confusing? Not really. The Beaumont's have a secret...at the age of 13 they inherit their savvy. What's a savvy? To put it simply, it is basically what talent or gift you are especially good at. For Momma, she's perfect (in everything she does), for Rocket, it's control of electricity, Fish is water, Poppa is the only one without one having married into the family. Mississippi (aka Mibs) is just about to turn 13. What will her gift be? You'll have to read to find out! Definitely recommended for younger readers and the young at heart! Happy reading!

Reader reviewed by Sab H. (Crystal Reviews)

I loved this book, it's so sweet. Not my usual read because it says
ages 9 - 12, but definitely worth it. The plot was full of surprises
and really original. She manages to make a story about magical kids
without using the word "magic". A savvy is an ability the family is
born with, and starts on your 13th birthday.
The characters were
wonderful, probably my favorite part. I love the sibling relationship.
It's such a different type of love. She creates a family with an
incredible bond made by the secret that is sharing a savvy. The cover
is pretty and sticks to the plot. If you like magical kids, this is a
book for you!

Reader reviewed by Mari Rydings

Ingrid Laws fantasy/realistic fiction novel, Savvy, was a delightful read! Law employs a cast of intriguing and often unpredictable characters to flesh out a unique and entertaining plot. Mississippi Beaumont (Mibs, for short) is about to turn 13. Not only will she be a teenager, but she will discover her savvy. A savvy, as Mibs family calls it, is a secret talent that sets the Beaumonts apart from other people in the most extraordinary of ways. Mibs Grandfather Bomba can move mountains; her oldest brother, Rocket, can manipulate electricity; her mothers savvy is being perfect, and another brother, Fish, can create severe storms. As exciting as this sounds, Mibs has cause for concern: when her brothers first discovered their savvies, the results were catastrophic. Could the same fate be in store for Mibs?

 

Sadly, just days before her 13^th birthday, Mibs Poppa is involved in a terrible car accident that leaves him in critical condition at a hospital in Salina, Kansas, a town at least 60 miles from where Mibs and her family lives. Mibs knows for certain that she can use what she thinks is her savvy to save her father, if she can only figure out a way to reach him.

 

When Mibs, her brothers, and the local pastors two children stowaway on a pink bus owned by an awkward Bible salesman, the real adventure begins. On the mixed up journey, Mibs discovers her true savvy and realizes that love and friendship can be found in the oddest of places.

 

The novel started out slowly, and it was a struggle to keep reading. But the paced picked up after the kids hid on the bus, and it was wild ride until the end. Law seems to love language, and I enjoyed the playful, sometimes nonsensical words she injected throughout the story. I got the sense the she really enjoyed telling this tale. I know I enjoyed reading it.

Reader reviewed by AyeCaptain Reviews

The Beaumonts have always been special--it's in their blood. It's like this: whenever a member of the family turns 13, that person get's their "savvy". The savvy can be humane (i.e. perfection) or terribly dangerous (i.e. moving mountains).
Now it is Mib's 13th birthday, and she knows her savvy is going to be great. Especially since one of her brothers creates hurricanes and the other controls electricity. But Mibs wakes up to find her father in a coma, no savvy in sight, and no ride to the hospital. Well, no ride until the bus comes along.
And then the bus heads in the wrong direction--away from the hospital.

A delicious mixture of innocence, fun, and creativity, Savvy was to me a book like no other. I adored all the characters and development (such incredible development for a children's book!). And I can I talk about the creativity again? WOW. It had me from the first page.
Savvy is a book teens and children will enjoy, if you like the genre.
Obviously, there were some things I could think of that wouldn't make sense if it was real, but I thought it was wonderful how Law brought together the whole idea that everyone has a kind of 'savvy', everyone has something they do especially well- be it kindness, humility, cooking a wonderful cherry pie, etc. etc.
If you're looking for a book to make you feel better and cheer you up, THIS IS IT. I'm positive I'll reread it one day. If I remember. In any case,

Rating: 5 stars.
Clean?: Yes. It should be. It's a children's book.
Length: 342 (reads like 250 in my opinion)
You'll like it if you like: creativity, "feel-good" books, some magic (not alot)
You probably won't like it if you like: chick flicks and the like

Reprinted from my blog, http://ayecaptain.blogspot.com

Reader reviewed by Reader Rabbit 1

I was drawn to this book because of the title, Savvy. And the concept of the savvies did not disappoint. However, the novel was more about Mibs and her family relationships then the savvy so I admit the first time around, I skimmed the book for sections about savvies. After that, I went back and read the whole book and was able to appreciate how well Ingrid Law delved into Mibs' relationships. Ingrid Law proceeded to put in some loveable characters such as good ol' Larry (the bus driver), Will Junior (one of the preacher's kids) and Samson (her brother). Anyway, Mibs made an excellent narrator and besides herdadsdyingwhat'smysavvygoingtobe Mibs had realistic thirteen-year old problems-problems which the 9-12 year old crowd will find easy to relate to (although it you're older than that, definitely do not write it off-I really enjoyed it). She's a bit impulsive at times but naturally that made for a better read. I wouldn't only recommend this book to fantasy readers but also to those who like realistic fiction.



Final Verdict: Despite not being much about savvies, Ingrid Law makes this novel worth reading because of her motley array of characters and Mibs' storytelling.

Reader reviewed by TheBookworm

A Crazy Adventure That Will Grab You

Savvy by Ingrid Law*
5 out of 5 stars

Savvy by Ingrid Law was great and definitely a book I would suggest people to read.

Mibs thirteenth birthday is only two days away. This is no ordinary thirteenth birthday for the Beaumont family. That day Mibs will receive her very own Savvy. Her grandfather can move mountains, her oldest brother creates electricity, and another brother causes hurricanes. What will her Savvy be?
The day before her birthday her Poppa never makes it home. Instead he is at the hospital in attentive care and not waking up. Now Mibs isnt praying for a wacky, huge savvy but one that will save her Poppa. On the day of her birthday she believes that her new savvy will wake up her Poppa, the problem is how to travel the 80 miles down to Salina. Mibs, Fish, Samson, Bobbi, and Will Junior hitch a ride on a pink bus with a twitchy, kind bible delivery man who doesnt have the heart to kick them off. But when the bus goes in the wrong direction, the passengers end up in a crazy adventure.

All the characters and their secrets and quirks are likable, enjoyable, realistic (besides the storm bringing savvies), interesting, entertaining, believable, and make you want to know what happened to them.

I thought the plot and direction of the story was perfect. It kept you flipping the pages and never had you skipping to the last few pages so you knew the end. Every page was a part of the journey and you didnt want to miss out on a second.

It got deep in some parts, but you were able to understand what Mibs was going through because of it. It wasnt a light atmosphere all the time, but would you be all happy-dory if you knew your father might die?

Savvy was an extremely good book that will be seated on my shelf and sought after by my siblings.

Review Date: August 13th, 2008

*This book was provided by a Walden Media email reply back contest.