Module 5 - Bud, Not Buddy

 Courtesy of Bing images

Book Summary:   
Bud, Not Buddy is a book about a young black orphan boy during the Jazz era.  He starts out in an ophanage and is sent to live with a foster family.  When things turn bad due to their already existent child, Bud decides take off on his own.  He begins by trying to have his first meal at the mission.  Then he goes to the library.  Finally a friend from the orphanage catches up with him.  The decided to go west.  They stay the night in a camp made up of cardboard boxes.  Bud misses the train and decides to look for his true father.  All he has to go on is flyer he received from his mother.  He starts walking to the next town.  He gets picked up and eventually makes it to the place supposed to be owned by his father, Herman E. Calloway (a jazz band leader and club owner).  Of course, when Bud confronts his father, his father doesn't believe him.  Herman's band takes Bud in.  Through a course of events they finally learn the truth, that Herman isn't his father but actually his grandfather.  This book gives a good example of what life was like for blacks and poor people during the Jazz era.

APA Reference:
Curtis, P. C. (1999). Bud, not buddy. New York, NY: Scholastic.

My Impressions: 

I really enjoyed this book.  Though fiction, the settings and events that take place are characteristically

accurate to the day and time being portrayed.  For instance, Herman E. Calloway couldn't actually own his

club because he was black.  He always kept a white member of the band that he could put the club's name

in.  This would be an excellent book for teachers to use during Black History Month.  I also liked the

portayal of Hoovertown.  The towns set up outside of cities made of cardboard boxes were lived in by

families who didn't have enough money to rent or buy houses.  I actually learned a lot from this book.

 

Professional Reviews:

Bud, Not Buddy, by Christopher Paul Curtis, made history on Martin Luther King Day in January 2000. It was the first children's book in literary history to receive both the 2000 John Newbery Award book and 2000 Coretta Scott King Author Award. The committees work independently to make their selections so the announcement of the awards that morning in San Antonio, Texas, at the American Library Association midwinter meeting surprised everyone in the audience, including the committee members. Bud, Not Buddy has evolved as not only the most distinguished choice in literature for 1999, but also has become one of the more popular Newbery Award titles.

It is a heartfelt novel that resonates with both zest and tenderness as it entertains questions about racism, belonging, love, and hope. Bud's fast-paced, first-person account moves with the rhythms of jazz and celebrates life, family, and a child's indomitable spirt. It is the story of ten-year-old Bud Caldwell, recently orphaned and living in Flint, Michigan, during the Great Depression. After leaving a terrible situation in a foster home, Bud begins his journey to find who he believes is his father-a well-known bandleader who lives in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

The popularity of Bud, Not Buddy is strongly evidenced by the number of publications and websites that provide suggestions in using the title in the classroom and library media center.
 

Professional Review Reference:
 Brodie, C. S. (2002). Bud, not buddy. School Library Media Activities Monthly, 19(3), 47. Retrieved from http://www.schoollibrarymonthly.com/

Library Uses: 
This would be an excellent book to have theme book talks about.  This book abounds with themes:  family relationships, racism, travel, labor unions and much more.
This book could also be used for kids to make maps.  They could map out the journey that bud took to be posted with a book display in the library.