Friday, January 14, 2011

Savvy

SavvySavvy by Ingrid Law

AR Reading Level: 6.0
On the library stacks: Young adult fiction
Awards: Kirkus Editors Choice; Boston Globe/Horn Book Award/Honors; Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Children's Literature; Newbery Honor; Publishers Weekly Best Book; Andre Norton Award; ALA Notable/Best Books
Recommended for: Grades 4+

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Mibs comes from an extraordinary family. Each kid gets a superpower of sorts, called a savvy, when they turn 13. But Mibs turns 13 during a critical time in her family. Her dad is in the hospital after a horrible accident. Mibs can't stand being away from him and she's sure that if she can sort out her savvy and find her way to the hospital, she can make everything turn out right.

This is a really creative book with great word choice. I read it out loud with my 10-year old and, while I loved saying all those cool words, it seemed to drag on a little long for me. I think maybe that's because most of the book takes place on a single day, and it took us quite literally months to get through it.

I liked how each member of Mibs' family has a purpose in making the family unit whole and complete. I did think there were too many characters in the book overall though. I'm also definitely too much of a rule-follower to get excited about the rebelliousness of the kids in achieving their goal. But it's a heartwarming tale that isn't afraid of discussing God, and I certainly shed a few tears at the end.

Also reviewed by: Book ClutterTeen Lit Review ~ Bloggin' 'bout Books ~ Good Clean Reads ~ So Many Books, So Little Time ~ Booking Mama ~ Becky's Book Reviews ~ Fuzzy Cricket ~ Maw Books ~ Lesa's Book Critiques ~ Books & other thoughts ~ Book Nut ~ It's All About Books ~ Your link here? 

Source: Purchased

2 comments:

Corinne said...

I tried this when my then nearly-ten-year-old and we just didn't get into it and quit.

Nina said...

That sounds like fun when each family member has a superpower. ooh, really months to go trough a book? I don't think I can do that. Great review.