Bud, Not Buddy

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Curtis, Christopher Paul. 1999. BUD, NOT BUDDY. New York, NY: Delacourt Press. ISBN 0385323069

SUMMARY
"Ten-year-old Bud, a motherless boy living in Flint, Michigan, during the Great Depression, escapes a bad foster home and sets out in search of the man he believes to be his father--the renowned bandleader, H. E. Calloway of Grand Rapids." (CIP)

ANALYSIS
This book is just such a great story that I found it very difficult to read analytically for review. I kept having to remind myself to try to look at the book from different perspectives, and pay attention to plot devices, historical details and characterization, but I was so caught up in the story that I had a hard time keeping notes.

Bud is from the first such an incredibly sympathetic and likable character that the reader is on his side immediately. He's a combination of no-nonsense self-sufficiency (with his lists and rules on how to survive) and heartbreaking vulnerabilities. Part of what makes Bud such an empathetic character is how he seems to so easily empathize with the people he comes into contact with. Even when speaking of his terrible foster family Bud has sympahty to spare, "I can't all the way blame Todd for giving me trouble, though. If I had a regular home with a mother and father I wouldn't be too happy about other kids living in my house either" (32).

Another thing from the reading experience that stands out is what an incredibly sensory book BUD, NOT BUDDY is. Bud describes entering the library early in the book "I got a whiff of the leather on all the old books, a smell that got real strong if you picked one of them up...then there was the smell of the cloth that covered brand -new books, the books that made a splitting sound when you opened them" (54).

Curtis does a good job with building suspense throughout the story. One example on a smaller scale is the scene in the Amoses house when Bud speaks of the family deserving "what they were going to get" and making the reader believe that Bud has some plans for the gun. Of course, Bud, the excellent role model, says, "these things [guns] were just too dangerous to play with or take chances with" (33). Speaking of good role models, the flat but helpful secondary character of the librarian is one of the nicest portrayals of a librarian I've seen in YA fiction.

Overall, this books works well even for an adult reader trying to read analytically. I underlined Bud's epiphany on page 172, but I also enjoyed the moment within the story. With BUD, NOT BUDDY Curtis gives a wonderful example of gripping, eangaging and historically accurate Young Adult Historical Fiction.

REVIEWS
"A 10-year-old boy in Depression-era Michigan sets out to find the man he believes to be his father. "While the harshness of Bud's circumstances are authentically depicted, Curtis imbues them with an aura of hope, and he makes readers laugh even when he sets up the most daunting scenarios." PUBLISHERS WEEKLY

"The lively humor contrasts with the grim details of the Depression-era setting and the particular difficulties faced by African Americans at that time. Bud is a plucky, engaging protagonist. Other characters are exaggerations: the good ones (the librarian and Pullman car porter who help him on his journey and the band members who embrace him) are totally open and supportive, while the villainous foster family finds particularly imaginative ways to torture their charge. However, readers will be so caught up in the adventure that they won't mind." SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL

CONNECTIONS
This book is perfectly suited to be a read-aloud book in the classroom. It would work wonderfully to supplement a unit on the Great Depression, or even Black History month, as one of a list of books for read and review, but the fast pace, humor and delightful characterizations make BUD a great choice for a classroom read. Although perhaps more immediately interesting to boys, girls will also find characters, and even traits in Bud, to empathize and identify with.