My Review of Switch by Ingrid Law, from Hilary Wagner

What can I say about Ingrid Law? I love her writing style, full of fun, with a certain magic to it, yet it's realistic and attainable. She makes her characters' savvys seem downright normal, though they're anything but and her latest novel, Switch, is no exception.

Here is the blurb about Switch from the publisher, Dial Books:

Gypsy Beaumont has always been a whirly-twirly free spirit, so as her thirteenth birthday approaches, she hopes to get a magical ability that will let her fly, or dance up to the stars. Instead, she wakes up on her birthday with blurry vision . . . and starts seeing flashes of the future and past. But when Momma and Poppa announce that her very un-magical, downright mean Grandma Pat has Alzheimer’s and is going to move in with them, Gypsy’s savvy—along with her family’s—suddenly becomes its opposite. Now it’s savvy mayhem as Gypsy starts freezing time, and no one could have predicted what would happen on their trip to bring Grandma Pat home  . . . not even Gypsy.

Oh, a whirly-twirly free spirit? Yes, take me to that world! Law really hits the mark with Switch. Middle grade girls and boys will relate to Gypsy Beaumont. She's insecure, as most kids are at this age, but she finds a way to harness her confidence, taking control of the otherwise uncontrollable and proving there's much more to her than her whirly-twirlyness. 

Even if you haven't read Savvy or Scumble, Law's two earlier novels, you can slip into Switch with ease. Law deftly gives readers backstory, without over explaining things...it's just enough.

Law has an uncanny ability to make fantasy feel very real and very natural. From the opening line of the book, she sucks you into a world that's totally new, but somewhere you've been before. She takes the normal and throws in a handful of fairy dust and a pinch of unbelievable.

Switch is a perfect choice if you're looking for a great holiday gift for the young book lover in your life, not to mention it's got a nice wintry cover, and for those of you who want the perfect blend of reality and fantasy, pick this up for yourself. You just might believe you have a savvy by the time you're done reading!

If you've read Switch or any other of Ingrid Law's books, tell us what you think! We'd love to hear!