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Readers > Talk it Up! > Discussion guides > 2011 Oregon Reader's Choice Award Nominees > Savvy

Savvy by Ingrid Law

Discussion guide written by Barbara Head.

Summary

The Beaumont family has a magical secret. Each possess a "savvy," a special supernatural power that strikes when they turn thirteen. Mibs's Grandpa Bomba moves mountains and her older brothers create hurricanes and spark electricity. Now it's Mibs's turn. What will her savvy be? Will it turn out to be a blessing, or a curse? Stowed away on the bus of a Bible salesman, Mibs embarks on an unforgettable odyssey to help her make sense of growing up. Travel along with Mibs and her friends - you'll be happy you came along for the ride.

Booktalk

Well, turning 13 – becoming a real teenager – is a big change for anyone. But for the Beaumont family, a 13th birthday means getting your savvy. Mississippi Beaumont's brother Fish can create hurricanes, her brother Rocket can control electricity, and the family pantry is stocked with old songs collected in canning jars by her grandma.

Mississippi (Mibs for short), dreams about getting her savvy – maybe she will grow invisible wings, receive x-ray vision, or be able to breathe underwater! But just as her birthday approaches, something terrible happens:
"I pushed the food around my plate, ignoring my sister and daydreaming about what it would be like when I got my own savvy, when the telephone rang right in the middle of pot roast, mashed potatoes and mighty unpopular green beans. As Momma rose to answer, us kids, and Grandpa Bomba too, seized the chance to plop our mashers on top of our beans while Momma's back was turned.
We were all smiling to each other around the kitchen table at the smart way we'd taken care of those beans when Momma dropped the phone with a rattling clatter and a single sob – perfectly devastated." (excerpts, p. 8 – 9)

Poppa was in a car accident – "his car crashed-up bad" and he was lying in a bed at Salina Hope Hospital, not able to wake up. Now, Mibs has only one dream – that her savvy will be waking up Poppa. But to do that she needs to get to the hospital in Salina. So Mibs stows away with a hapless salesman on a rickety old pink school bus – along with box after box of pink Bibles and, as it turns out, more than a few friends.

But will they make it to Salina in time to help Poppa? And what if Mibs's savvy doesn't come? Read Savvy by Ingrid Law. Maybe you'll even discover your own savvy.

342 pages, 4th grade and up

Discussion questions

Warning! Some of the questions contain key elements of the plot. Do not read if you don't want to know what happens!

  1. If you could have a "savvy" what would it be? Why?
  2. Why do the kids in Mibs's class make fun of her? What would you do if you were in her place?
  3. Which scene in Savvy is your favorite?
  4. Penguin Young Readers' Group, the publisher of Savvy, has created a discussion guide with many thought-provoking questions.

If you liked this book, try

Activities

Song in a jar:

Decorate a canning jar with a decorative label, ribbons, or other materials. Write or type out the words to a favorite song onto a long, skinny piece of paper and roll it into a scroll. Insert scroll into the jar and add a few small jingle bells. Present your "song in a jar" to a friend. You can get some decorating ideas from the book Jazzy Jars: glorious gift ideas by Marie Browning.

Visit Ingrid Law's website.

Snacks

Ginger ale and rainbow sherbet