Savvy

Each Beaumont child possesses a supernatural talent, or savvy, that they can use for good or ill. They acquire these powers on their 13th birthday, the same day they become teens and enter fully into adolescence. This double whammy of responsibility forces them to confront self-doubt and accept who they are as unique individuals. Guiding them are the wisdom and experience of those who have gone before, plus the idea that they aren't freaks of nature but simply human beings with unusual abilities.

Like most kids who possess unusual strengths, the Beaumont children must deal with their talents’ effects on others. For the Beaumonts, though, the discovery of their talents happens all at once when they turn 13. The shock of this sudden revelation and the sheer power of their new abilities causes reverberations in their lives that are much stronger than, if similar to, the ones that most kids must face.

Fish Beaumont, for example, has strong emotions that, combined with his ability to control the weather, can cause a hurricane. His savvy forces his family to move far inland, away from large bodies of water. Fish struggles between his intense feelings and his guilt over the damage he can cause. It’s a challenge common to young teens as they grow physically and mentally stronger at a time when their emotions reach a fever pitch. For Fish, the damage he can do when his feelings get out of control is much greater. It takes him over a year to learn how to regulate his feelings and control the resulting weather patterns.

His brother Rocket, when upset, tends to cause electrical blackouts nearby. Daunted by his failure to control his savvy during the emotional crisis of his father’s tragic accident, Rocket decides to live with his uncle’s family in Wyoming, far from cities and their power circuits. It’s less an act of contrition than one of practical wisdom, but it also confirms that he’s a good person who means to help, not hinder, the lives of others.

Mibs, too, feels highly disoriented when her savvy kicks in on schedule and surprises her with a sudden ability to read other people’s minds. Buffeted between this new power, guilt about hearing other people’s private thoughts, and the need to visit her comatose father, she stows away on a Bible delivery bus, thereby getting several people into trouble and causing panic among her relatives. She notes, “Guilt nearly crushed me” (308).

Fortunately, her parents have long since assured her that a savvy isn’t a disease but a talent. To this understanding, she adds the discovery that, in an emergency, she can keep her head and serve as a smart and effective leader. She also learns from Lester’s experience not to listen to the hectoring comments of others but to act from her authentic voice. Mibs thus comes to terms with her situation. She uses her natural determination to help bring the busload of people to the hospital, where her new savvy enables her to communicate with her comatose father and wake him up.

Like Fish and Rocket, most teens spend years learning to master themselves as they grow toward adulthood. Mibs's case is exceptional: She manages, in the course of an adventurous 24 hours, to cope with her new power and use it effectively. Her experience, though, is fundamentally similar to that of most teens, and it serves as an example for others in the art of growing up.