Savvy is the new book from up and coming author author: Ingrid Law]. The book is an intriguing look into the life of an extra special family known as the Beaumont's. The Beaumont's are endowed with what they refer to as their own personal "Savvy," some type of supernatural power that they develop on or around their thirteenth birthday. The story focuses on the young protagonist Mississippi (Mibs) Beaumont who is rapidly approaching this fateful date. When her father is involved in a car accident More...

I picked this up because of a strong recommendation and when I heard some of it was set in Kansas I was sold. Since I'm a native Kansan I knew I was going to like the book even more because of that little fact.

Mississippi (most commonly known as Mibs) is just about to turn thirteen. A big step in any kid's life, but in Mib's family turning thirteen means a whole lot more than becoming a teenager, you also get your savvy. A savvy is a special power you have and for everyone it's different. Mib's More...

Reviewed by Marta Morrison for TeensReadToo.com

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 ki More...

"Monday through Wednesday, we called our thin stretch of land Kansaska. Thursday through Saturday, we called it Nebransas."

It's writing like this that makes Savvy fun and quirky. Law especially captures the as the main character, a young girl named Mississippi (Mibs) Beaumont.

Mibs and her family share a special secret: that on their 13th birthday they get a certain power. For example, Mibs' brother Fish can cause hurricanes and thunderstorms, and her other brother Rocket can generate electricit More...

I liked just about everything about Savvy. Interesting characters--Mibs, Fish, Lester, Lill, Will Junior, Bobbi, all well-developed. I really enjoyed getting to know these characters. I had high hopes for Lester, smiled when Lill brought out the best in him, and worried when trouble met the big pink bus.

While the story concept is intriguing, it's Ingrid Law's writing that made the story shine. She has a wonderful savvy for words, if you will. Mib's description of her father, for instance: He was More...

This is getting some Newbery buzz, but I wasn't thrilled. A good story, well-developed, but I wouldn't say distinguished; it felt a little flat, like the plot was supposed to be enough to drive it. Others have made other good comparisons, but it reminded me of Little Miss Sunshine.

The most interesting parts to me were about the relationship between Mibs and her perfect mother; I would have liked to see that explored a lot more. I guess this is good fluff with some meat, and I would have enjoyed More...

Meh. I wanted to like Savvy, but it felt manipulative and overwritten to me... the same vibe I got from The Underneath and The Higher Power of Lucky. This one, not surprisingly, is a Newbery contender as well. A florid style, faux vernacular, and over-the-top alliteration (and cutesy vocabulary) does not equal literary merit! I felt like it lacked both strength and authenticity.

The story itself could have stood on its own, and with a different writing style I might have enjoyed it. I like sto More...

It’s hard to believe that this book was mostly in the course of one day. Seriously, when they were at the pool I was thinking it was the next day. I couldn’t believe not even 24 hours had passed, and it was on Mib’s 13th birthday of all days. Twelve/Thirteen wasn’t the best time for me so I tend to pick older or younger protagonists to avoid the period all together, but I heard this was such a good book from reviews and it’s a modern day fantasy and that is always something I liked.

The road tri More...

Savvy is a great book for young readers, as well as those that are young at heart. Ingrid Law shows great imagination and depth in her story about a girl, who on a quest to help her ailing father, discovers what makes her special from everyone else.

Mibs, the protagonist of Savvy, comes from a family that has many special attributes. Her grandfather can move mountains, one of her brothers causes storms, and her other brother can create electricity. As you can imagine, she has much to live up to.

W More...

Absolutely precious and enjoyable. Ingrid Law has a wonderful imagination, and she is great with figurative language and nonsensical words. I smiled through the entire read.

Ms. Lewis

The Beaumonts are special. On their thirteenth birthday, each child comes into their savvy. Fish Beaumont causes storms. Older brother Rocket is electric, able to keep the Beaumont house lit up during a black out and jump start the old family car. Mrs. Beaumont has the savvy of being perfect (even when she messes up, it's perfectly awful). And grandpa can move the earth.

Savvy opens right before Mibs Beaumont's thirteenth birthday. She's understandably excited, wondering what her savvy will be. R More...

Mississippi Beaumont, better known as Mibs, is the soon-to-be thirteen-year-old daughter in an extraordinary family, a family whose members, usually on their thirteenth birthday, become aware of and able to use their "savvy," a supernatural gift or power. Don't get me wrong, they're not superheroes, just ordinary people who each have one extraordinary ability. Grandpa can move mountains, literally. Rocket can create electricity, and Fish creates weather (not always under control). Each Beaumont More...

Her grandfather can make the Earth move. Her brother can make hurricanes. Her mother is perfect. Mibs is normal...so far. But she's coming up on her thirteenth birthday, and that's when her family generally inherits their savvy--their special talent.

Just days before Mibs' very special birthday, though, her father gets in a terrible car accident, and the outlook, well. It's not good. Her mother and oldest brother head to the nearest city while Mibs and the rest of her siblings are stuck in the c More...

In Mibs' family, turning thirteen is the most special of birthdays. And Mibs is days away from turning thirteen. In her family, almost everyone gets their savvy on their thirteenth birthday, a special power that they then need to figure out how to harness and use. One of her brothers, Fish, has the power to control wind, and on his thirteenth birthday he created a hurricane. That's why they now live far far from any water in Kansas. As Mibs' birthday approaches, her father is in a terrible accid More...

Two days before Mississippi “Mibs” Beaumont turns thirteen, her father is critically injured in a car accident and left comatose in Salina Hope Hospital. Coming of age in Mibs’ family is special, though—her mom’s side of the family all have “savvies,” superpowers of sorts ranging from doing everything perfectly (her mother) to her brother Rocket’s command of electricity (he burns out light bulbs when he’s upset but is the only one who can jump-start their ancient station wagon) to her Grandpa Bo More...

I couldn't put Savvy down until I was finished! It was fun and touching with great characters and a clever premise. When a Beaumont kid turns 13, they get their "savvy." Mib's older brothers have powerful savvys: one can make storms and the other makes electricity. What will Mib's savvy be? Right before Mib's 13th birthday her father is hospitalized from a terrible car accident. She is determined to visit her father at the hospital 90 miles away because she is convinced that her savvy will allo More...

Just finished True Meaning of Smekday...thought I was getting into another sci-fiction future adventure and was pleasantly, mistaken. In fact, once you get to know this sleepy, small town of characters you don't want to ever get off the pink bible bus!! Characters are raw and exciting, the story wraps you up, the text bursting in your mind, really the characters are that developed. The POV is extremely developed through Mibs and her family, the subtle self-esteem lesson between know-how and Savv More...

I'm admit that this is definitely MY kind of book! Quirky characters, slightly out of round world, humor, eccentric premise and a mostly-happy-ending and I am completely happy ;-) I had heard good things about this book and it lived up to its buzz for me. This could have been cloying and sappy but Law kept well clear of those pitfalls and delivered a charming and satisfying book with just enough edge. Think Polly Horvath with a sweeter touch.

I would recommend this charming coming-of-age story just for the ticklesome "voice" of Mibs Beaumont. Each person in her family has a supernatural (and often quirky) gift, or savvy, which must be scumbled before they are fit to mingle with the public. Mibs comes to terms with her own disappointing gift and recognizes that even non-Beaumonts wield their own savvies. A delightful book from a first-time author. Comes out in May.

Whoops! Can't review this one here. Have to do it professionally (consarn it). In any case, I think the first chapter is a strong strong piece of work. The rest of the book never quite reaches its full potential, but that isn't to say that it isn't a great great read. I'm looking forward to Law's other books.

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 so More...

Mississippi (but call her Mibs) Beaumont is about to turn 13, a momentous occasion in her family; on their 13th birthdays, family members come into their “savvy,” a special and unique gift. Mib’s brother Fish creates heavy weather, her brother Rocket has an affinity for electricity, and her mother does everything perfectly – which is luckily not as annoying as it sounds.

Days before her birthday, Mibs father is in a terrible accident, and her mother and older brother Rocket drive out to Salina, t More...

What struck me about this book was the use of language. It is not often that you find such playful and creative words in a middle-grade novel. The plot and numerous characters may be too complex for some younger readers, but the words are not to be missed. Here's was my write-up for the bookstore:

It's chock-full of delicious words & phrases:

"hobbledehoy boy"
"fizgiggley girls"
"persnickety moment"
"niminy-piminy thing"
"razzmatazz radio"
"full hokeypokey"
"marching herky-jerky"
"becoming discom More...

This is the best coming-of-age story I have ever read.

This was a fun little romp. The author has a playful way with words that just tickles me.
Mississippi "Mibs" Beaumont is awaiting her 13th birthday with both eagerness and trepidation. In the Beaumont family, a 13th birthday activates your "savvy," giving you a special power that is uniquely yours. Each person's savvy is always a big surprise, so the family always gets a little nervous as the big day approaches. What will that child's new power be, and will she/he be able to "scumble"(control) i More...

This is a Newbery award book,a good story slightly spoiled for me by an overabundance of whimsical coun-tree diction. I love the idea of a savvy--a special ability that each member of this family is granted at age 13. Rocket pops electricity off his fingertips, Fish creates hurricanes when he is upset, and Mibs (short for Mississippi) is just turning 13 at the opening of this book and has to discover and learn to scumble it. Things get complicated: her Poppa gets in a terrible wreck (I find myse More...

This is a wonderful debut novel. The supporting characters are fun, and Law does a good job of giving them decent roles despite how many there are tagging along on the bus ride. I liked the idea of kids in this special family getting a "power" of some sort on their 13th birthday. I like the way they have to "scumble" their savvy (and scumble is a real painting term, so it's cute that Mibs' mom defines it as she's simultaneously painting and teaching them about their powers). I like the way the s More...

Mississippi Beaumont is awaiting her 13th birthday. That's the birthday when the savvy comes for her family. Mibs can't wait to figure out her savvy. Her brother Rocket has electricity, and her brother Fish has a powerful weather savvy.

The other good thing about 13 is homeschooling. Until the kids learn to scumble their savvies, Momma thinks it's best to keep them home. No more Hebron Middle School, and no more snarky comments from Ashley Bing and Emma Flint.

Then they get word about Daddy. Mib's More...

J LAW - fantasy, family tragedy, coming of age.
Mississippi Beaumont is about to have her most important birthday ever, number 13. This will be the day her savvy is revealed and she can start learning to scumble it. Her brother Rocket controls electric currents, and Fish causes hurricane, Momma's perfect at making things, and Grandpa can make new land spring up anywhere.
But when Poppa's in a terrible crash the day before Mibs' birthday, she knows nothing will go smoothly. Rocket and Momma go to More...

It is a little difficult to get past the dialect of Law's novel, which includes a lot of made-up words and reads somewhat like a Southern tall tale. However, once engrossed in it, the story contains its own brand of funny and unique magic.

Children in the Beaumont family have traditionally begun discovering their "savvy," or ununsual magical talent, at age thirteen. On Mibs Beaumont's thriteenth birthday, she is anxious that her savvy will disturb the celebration. That it does, to a certain exten More...