My rating: 5 of 5 stars
When a book is as original and delightful as Ingrid Law’s Savvy, it is usually hard not to be disappointed by the sequel. Somehow, Law has avoided that trap, creating a follow up that keeps some of what made Savvy wonderful but also moving forward to fresher fields. Scumble is not only a satisfying read on its own, it withstands comparisons to its predecessor.
Thirteen year old Ledger Kale is Mibs Beaumont’s cousin and just coming into his own savvy. Most pleasing for the reader, Ledge has some of Mibs’ highly original narrative voice, but not so much that it becomes precious. He is her cousin, and their voices are clearly cousins, too. The book opens with another road trip, but that’s quickly completed and the setting this time is the Wyoming ranch of another cousin. Ledge’s personality and his story are more focused on himself, proving that an adolescent’s self-discovery doesn’t need to have a strong external force to be compelling.
ELLs may find Scumble easier to read than Savvy because Ledge’s way of speaking is less regional, but it will still require readers from other cultures to have patience navigating a highly idiomatic narration. For those advanced students who do read it, they may find some personally familiar themes of upheaval and adjustment, as well as the frustration of trying to care for family and self in an unfamiliar setting.
(Savvy was reviewed on Tuesday.)
