A Newbery Honor Winner for 2009, Savvy by Ingrid Law is the tale of a family who have amazing abilities and have to learn to control them.
Upon turning 13, every Beaumont gets a savvy, a special ability. Mibs is sure her savvy can wake things (including people up). Just in time because her father was just involved in a car accident, leaving him unconscious in the hospital. Convinced she can wake him up, Mibs hitches a ride on a bus along with her brothers and two friends, Will and Bobbi.
Upon being discovered, they convince the driver, Lester, to take them to Salina to the hospital–AFTER he finishes his deliveries of bibles. This leads to one chaotic adventure after another as all the Beaumonts struggle to control (and figure out) their savvy’s. It turns out Mib’s savvy is not waking things up but hearing ink (tattoos and such) reveal others’ thoughts. Overwhelmed at times, Mibs causes a ruckus that leads to punches between Will and her brother, Fish, who can control the weather and a scene in a diner where they pick up another hitch-hiker named Lill.
Finally arriving in Salina with a police escort, Mibs is convinced she can still wake up her dad–and she does. By telling him he never gives up and he has to wake up. Her dad is not the same–severe head injury has left him with memory problems–but Mibs learns about family, love, being a teenager, and being happy with the life she has. “When life takes a turn and you can’t step back…all you can do is keep moving forward and remember what you’ve learned” because “the outcome of a choice is almost as hard to predict or to control as a new savvy.”
“You never can tell when a bad thing might make a good thing happen.”
Great coming-of-age tale with tons of action and adventure from the heart. Life lessons for kids who have great hearts, but still have a lot to learn. Fantastic tale about your lot in life, accepting it, and finding contentment in it. Highly recommended!