Sway

March 15, 2012
Ten-year-old Cass can't wait for her mother to return from a four-month-long disaster rescue trip, but when she finally does, it's a bitter disappointment. Cass and her father have tried to adapt to Toodi Bleu Nordenhauer's frequent absences: "My dad tries to fill in the empty part of the pizza when the Mom slice is taken away." But this time Toodi's leaving Alabama for good--not for a disaster but for a stranger named Ken. Who needs rescuing now? Emotions are raw and real here--it's genuinely painful to witness Cass' denial-heavy response to her mom's sudden exit, as well as her ice-cold view of her well-meaning father. The story perks up considerably when Cass and her dad hit the road in a dumpy RV called "The Roast" ("more Ritz cracker than Ritz-Carlton"). Her once-scorn-worthy dad is full of surprises, including his transformation to M.B. McClean, traveling purveyor of soap shavings allegedly owned by historical figures from Abraham Lincoln to Clara Barton. With the power of "Sway," those heroes' finer qualities are passed along to the washer. Cass' reactions to Sway and to her "new father" are fascinating and utterly credible, as is her evolving perception of her wayward mom. A linguistically playful heart-wrencher about healing, love, forgiveness and the power of believing in something good, whether it's old soap or your own family. (Fiction. 9-12)

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May 1, 2012

Gr 4-6-Cass Nordenhauer, 10, wants to be just like her mom, who is a disaster-response volunteer. Toodi Bleu's life is so exciting-she's off rescuing people for months at a time, while Cass is stuck at home in Alabama with her boring dad. Cass has high hopes that she'll accompany her mom on some missions this summer, but instead, Toodi runs off with a man she met doing rescue work. The story really takes off when Cass's father steps up to provide his daughter with another sort of summer adventure-crisscrossing the South in a beat-up RV named The Roast, giving away something called Sway. He has a suitcase full of soap slivers, all supposedly belonging to famous historical figures. Anyone who washes with one will get some sway, taking on the characteristics of its previous owner. This leads to many memorable (if a little sappy) encounters and exchanges among Cass, her dad, and the folks they meet, as well as some painful truths that Cass learns about her parents and life itself. The colorful writing can be a little much (like Toodi's constant rhyming couplets), and Cass's believability is strained at times (what 10-year-old can recognize fake antiques but accepts that the soap slivers really belonged to Napoleon and Mother Teresa?), but by the end, Cass will have worked her quirky way into readers' hearts.-Jenny Berggren, New York Public Library

Copyright 2012 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2012
When Cass's idolized mother leaves with another man, Cass's father drags her on a road trip to peddle special soaps purportedly possessing "Sway," the power to make users take on the qualities of famous past owners (e.g., Van Gogh, Napoleon). Cass's initial naiveti about both parents dissolves smoothly; Turner effectively balances whimsy, humor, and anxiety as the story moves toward its honest conclusion.

(Copyright 2012 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)