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Jun 22, 2014
Nadine in NY Jones
marked it as did-not-finish
My 11 year old daughter checked this out of the library, and then both kids wanted to play on the library computers so I was temporarily stranded (in the library!) without a book to read. So I picked this one up, and started reading. And when I closed it again, as we went on our way to finish our errands that day, I found I really really wanted to go back to it. This book isn't great, not by any means. There are far too many metaphors for my liking. (I read in another GR review: "A florid style,
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A pure good time! Law's storytelling voice was so spot on, I really, really believed that she was a 13 year old girl from Kansas! Such a fun book: the characters, the plot, the premise! I would love to have a savvy of my very own! I have to say that this year's Newberys have been a real treat for me. I can't imagine having to chose between this book and Graveyard Book for the medal, they were both excellent.
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This is one of the Potential Newbery Books that I'm reading and, well, as with The Wednesday Wars last year, I'm not seeing what others are.
To start with, I'm automatically prejudiced against any book that takes a perfectly good word and changes the meaning. In this case, it's savvy. "Savvy" actually comes from saber, the Spanish for "to know". But not in this book. Here it's akin to "special power/ability". Why Law couldn't have made up a new word, I don't know. She does when she talks about t ...more
To start with, I'm automatically prejudiced against any book that takes a perfectly good word and changes the meaning. In this case, it's savvy. "Savvy" actually comes from saber, the Spanish for "to know". But not in this book. Here it's akin to "special power/ability". Why Law couldn't have made up a new word, I don't know. She does when she talks about t ...more
I really enjoyed this book. Although it is fantasy (not my favorite genre), it was grounded in reality. You really come to love the Beaumont family and their "savvies." Great characters and a great story.
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A cute coming-of-age story with a fantastical overlay and some good descriptive language, but a little lacking in depth.
It reminded me of a modern version of Wizard of Oz! Love it!
Cute story about a family with magical abilities that manifest on their 13th birthdays. "Cute" is about as far as I'd go, though--I did not find this particularly memorable. It was pleasant. "Cute" and "pleasant." I do not mean to damn with faint praise, but with all the awards and raves this book has won, I was frankly underwhelmed.
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A fun magical-realism bildungsroman about a girl in a family where each member comes into a magical talent, or "savvy" on his or her 13th birthday.
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cute. i'd give it 3 and a half if i could. i would recommend this to my sixth grade girls mainly.
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I'm not getting all of the 4 and 5 star reviews on this one...I couldn't invest!
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really liked it and am going to read the second one as soon as i can
Oct 18, 2008
Lisa Vegan
marked it as to-read
Oct 26, 2009
Liz
marked it as to-read
Jan 24, 2010
katie
marked it as to-read
Nov 11, 2010
Evan
is currently reading it
Feb 26, 2011
Malina
marked it as to-read
Mar 21, 2011
Lisa
marked it as to-read
Feb 24, 2012
Shauna
marked it as to-read
Aug 12, 2012
Meg
marked it as to-read
Mar 31, 2015
Heidi
marked it as to-read
