HISTORICAL FICTION - Bud, Not Buddy

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Curtis, Christopher Paul. 1999. BUD, NOT BUDDY. New York: Dell Laurel-Leaf. ISBN 0553494104

PLOT SUMMARY
Set against the backdrop of 1930s Depression-era Michigan, this story follows ten-year-old Bud Caldwell’s pursuit to find the man he believes to be his father. Since Bud’s mother died when he was six, he has been on his own with nothing but a suitcase full of his “special things”. During this time, he has endured the cruelties of both orphanages and foster homes. One night, after a Ticonderoga pencil up the nose and a harrowing experience locked in a shed, Bud decides he’s had enough. Rather than return to the orphanage, he strikes out on his own with his suitcase and his self-authored Rules and Things for Having a Funner Life and Making a Better Liar Out of Yourself. Because his mother never told Bud who his father was, he has nothing to go on but a stack of old flyers for a jazz band called Herman E. Calloway and the Dusky Devastators of the Depression. Bud believes that Herman must be his father, so he sets off an adventure to find the man. After sleeping under trees, eating at the soup kitchen, hooking up with a fellow runaway, sleeping in a transient camp, and trying to hop a train, Bud eventually finds himself traveling by foot from Flint to Grand Rapids. Along the way, he is picked up by a kind old man named Lefty Lewis and deposited at the doorstep of Herman E. Calloway’s jazz club. What follows is a funny and poignant account of Bud’s impact on Calloway and the band along with the answers to long held questions.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS
This Newbery Medal winner’s content is as sound historically as it is engaging and entertaining. Curtis’ work of historical fiction takes great pains to provide the reader with an accurate account of the era. Examples include full and vivid descriptions of the box car runs and the transient camps known as “Hoovervilles” which dotted the country during the Great Depression. The term “Hooverville” is historically sound and was used to describe the areas once populated by unemployed and homeless Depression victims. When Bud asks why the place is called “Hooverville”, a tongue-in-cheek explanation is given by a resident: “That’s right, Mr. Hoover worked so hard at making sure every city has got one that it seems criminal to call them anything else.” Aside from reflecting the effects of the Depression era, Curtis also does a remarkable job of correctly portraying the conditions faced by African Americans during this time period. From having suspicion brought upon them by law enforcement officials to the inability to own property of their own, the various predicaments faced by blacks are explored. This aspect of the book garnered it a Coretta Scott Kind award in 2000.

Because the story is told in the first person narrative by the ten-year-old Bud, it contains one of the classic hallmarks of quality historical fiction for children: revealing history through the eyes of a young protagonist. While the historical details add depth and dimension to the story, they never threaten to overwhelm the telling. Bud’s character is instantly memorable and likable. For example, his description of losing a tooth engages and amuses the reader from the beginning: “. . . .it shakes you up a whole lot more than grown folks think it does when perfectly good parts of your body commence to loosening up and falling off of ya.” Bud’s self-proclaimed rules for living a fun life ring true and tickle the funny bone. Some of Curtis’ characters are loosely based on his own grandfathers, so a sense of authenticity pervades the book. The story flows smoothly from start to finish, and the plausibility makes the book a refreshing and thoughtful read. You can kiss my wrist if this story isn’t a winner!

REVIEW EXCERPTS
* Winner of the 2000 Newbery Medal
* Winner of the Coretta Scott King Award – 2000
* ALA Best Books & Notable Book – 2000
* School Library Journal Starred Review – 1999
* SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL REVIEW: “The lively humor contrasts with the grim details of the Depression-era setting and the particular difficulties faced by African Americans at that time. Curtis has given a fresh, new look to a traditional orphan-finds-a-home story that would be a crackerjack read-aloud.”
* BOOKLIST REVIEW: “Set in Michigan during the Great Depression, this is an Oliver Twist kind of foundling story, but it's told with affectionate comedy. Told in a boy's naive, desperate voice, with lots of examples of survival tactics ("Rules and Things for Having a Funner Life and Making a Better Liar out of Yourself"), this will make a great read-aloud.”
* PUBLISHERS WEEKLY REVIEW: “Curtis draws on a remarkable and disarming mix of comedy and pathos, this time to describe the travails and adventures of a 10-year-old African-American orphan in Depression-era Michigan. Bud's journey, punctuated by Dickensian twists in plot and enlivened by a host of memorable personalities, will keep readers engrossed from first page to last.”

CONNECTIONS
* Find and listen to classical jazz music to learn what Herman E. Calloway and the Dusky Devastators of the Depression sounded like.
* Have students create their own container full of “special things.” Combine this activity with a writing exercise to explain the importance of each item.
* What are some rules you live by?! Add to Bud Caldwell’s Rules and Things for Having a Funner Life and Making a Better Liar Out of Yourself.
* Research and talk about various aspects of the Great Depression such as bank runs, crop failures, unemployment, homelessness, soup kitchens, Hoovervilles, etc. Tie this lesson in with present day vagrancy and brainstorm solutions to the problem.
* Other Children’s Books Dealing with the Great Depression:
1) Stanley, Jerry. CHILDREN OF THE DUST BOWL: THE TRUE STORY OF THE SCHOOL AT WEEDPATCH CAMP. ISBN 0517880946
2) Lied, Kate. POTATO: A TALE FROM THE GREAT DEPRESSION. ISBN 0792269462
3) Freedman, Russell. CHILDREN OF THE GREAT DEPRESSION. ISBN 0618446303
4) Harper, Jo. FINDING DADDY: A STORY OF THE GREAT DEPRESSION. ISBN 1890515310
5) Hesse, Karen. OUT OF THE DUST. ISBN 0590371258