Bud, Not Buddy
Encyclopedia
Bud, Not Buddy is a 1999 children's novel by Christopher Paul Curtis
. The book is the winner of the 2000 Newbery Medal
for excellence in American children's literature, as well as the Coretta Scott King Award
that is given in recognition of outstanding African-American authors.
living in Flint, Michigan in 1937 during the Great Depression
. Since the death of his mother, four years earlier, Bud has been living in an orphanage, as well as short stints in several foster homes
. All he has of his mother are a bag of rocks and a photograph of his mother as a child and four fliers that show Herman E. Calloway and the Dusky Devastators playing in different places one of which are in flint.The story opens with Bud being placed with a new foster family, the Amoses, where Bud soon meets Todd Amos, their tormenting and abusive twelve year old son. After a fight with Todd, Bud is forced to spend the night in the garden shed where he is stung by hornets. After extricating himself from the shed, he causes Todd to wet the bed with warm water, and rather than returning to the orphanage, he decides to seek out Herman E. Calloway. With suitcase in hand, Bud starts walking the 120 miles to Grand Rapids
, where Calloway lives.
Along the way, he is picked up by Lefty Lewis, a Railroad Porter
from Grand Rapids, on his way to Flint. Bud tells him that he was running away from his home in Grand Rapids, and Lewis agrees to drive him back to Grand Rapids the following day. He sleeps in Lewis´s house. Bud shows up at the club where Calloway and his band are playing and tells Calloway that he is his father. While no one believes him, and Calloway himself is hostile toward the boy, the band members take pity on him and he comes to live with Calloway and Miss Thomas, the band's vocal stylist. Bud begins to go on the road with the band, and after one concert he notices Calloway picking up a rock and writing the date and location of the concert on it. When Bud shows Calloway the rocks from his mother, which have writing on them just like Calloway's, Bob accuses him of stealing them from his house. When the others intervene and Bud is questioned about the rocks, he explains that he got them from his mother, who, upon further questioning, is discovered to be Calloway's estranged daughter who had run away 11 years before.After that he goes and finds his dad with all the clues that his mom gave him.
.
) for Book-It Repertory Theatre Seattle, WA. The production premiered at Langston Hughes
Cultural Arts Center in a critically acclaimed workshop production in 2006, and mounted in a fully staged production on Book-It's home stage at the Center House Theatre the following year. It has since been produced at the Children’s Theatre Company in Minneapolis, Main Street Theatre in Houston, Chicago Playworks, and at the University of Michigan. Jackson's adaptation won the Distinguished Play Award from The American Alliance for Theater and Education in 2010. It was published by Dramatic Publishing in 2009.
Was sung in lefty Lewis house
Christopher Paul Curtis
Christopher Paul Curtis is an American children's author and a Newbery Medal winner who wrote The Watsons Go to Birmingham: 1963 and the critically acclaimed Bud, Not Buddy. Bud, Not Buddy is the first novel to receive both the Coretta Scott King Award and the Newbery Medal...
. The book is the winner of the 2000 Newbery Medal
Newbery Medal
The John Newbery Medal is a literary award given by the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association . The award is given to the author of the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children. The award has been given since 1922. ...
for excellence in American children's literature, as well as the Coretta Scott King Award
Coretta Scott King Award
The Coretta Scott King Award is an annual award presented by the Ethnic & Multicultural Information Exchange Round Table, part of the American Library Association...
that is given in recognition of outstanding African-American authors.
Plot summary
Bud, Not Buddy is the story of ten-year old Bud Caldwell, an orphanOrphan
An orphan is a child permanently bereaved of or abandoned by his or her parents. In common usage, only a child who has lost both parents is called an orphan...
living in Flint, Michigan in 1937 during the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
. Since the death of his mother, four years earlier, Bud has been living in an orphanage, as well as short stints in several foster homes
Foster care
Foster care is the term used for a system in which a minor who has been made a ward is placed in the private home of a state certified caregiver referred to as a "foster parent"....
. All he has of his mother are a bag of rocks and a photograph of his mother as a child and four fliers that show Herman E. Calloway and the Dusky Devastators playing in different places one of which are in flint.The story opens with Bud being placed with a new foster family, the Amoses, where Bud soon meets Todd Amos, their tormenting and abusive twelve year old son. After a fight with Todd, Bud is forced to spend the night in the garden shed where he is stung by hornets. After extricating himself from the shed, he causes Todd to wet the bed with warm water, and rather than returning to the orphanage, he decides to seek out Herman E. Calloway. With suitcase in hand, Bud starts walking the 120 miles to Grand Rapids
Grand Rapids, Michigan
Grand Rapids is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. The city is located on the Grand River about 40 miles east of Lake Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 188,040. In 2010, the Grand Rapids metropolitan area had a population of 774,160 and a combined statistical area, Grand...
, where Calloway lives.
Along the way, he is picked up by Lefty Lewis, a Railroad Porter
Porter (carrier)
A porter, also called a bearer, is a person who shifts objects for others.-Historical meaning:Human adaptability and flexibility early led to the use of humans for shifting gear...
from Grand Rapids, on his way to Flint. Bud tells him that he was running away from his home in Grand Rapids, and Lewis agrees to drive him back to Grand Rapids the following day. He sleeps in Lewis´s house. Bud shows up at the club where Calloway and his band are playing and tells Calloway that he is his father. While no one believes him, and Calloway himself is hostile toward the boy, the band members take pity on him and he comes to live with Calloway and Miss Thomas, the band's vocal stylist. Bud begins to go on the road with the band, and after one concert he notices Calloway picking up a rock and writing the date and location of the concert on it. When Bud shows Calloway the rocks from his mother, which have writing on them just like Calloway's, Bob accuses him of stealing them from his house. When the others intervene and Bud is questioned about the rocks, he explains that he got them from his mother, who, upon further questioning, is discovered to be Calloway's estranged daughter who had run away 11 years before.After that he goes and finds his dad with all the clues that his mom gave him.
Mommy Says No
The lyrics to Mommy Says No, the song Kim Sleet (Lefty Lewis' granddaughter) sings to Bud at the breakfast table, were written by Christopher Paul Curtis's daughter, Sydney McKenzie Curtis, who holds the copyrightCopyright
Copyright is a legal concept, enacted by most governments, giving the creator of an original work exclusive rights to it, usually for a limited time...
.
Stage adaptation
Bud, not Buddy was adapted for the stage by Reginald Andre Jackson (with permission from author Christopher Paul CurtisChristopher Paul Curtis
Christopher Paul Curtis is an American children's author and a Newbery Medal winner who wrote The Watsons Go to Birmingham: 1963 and the critically acclaimed Bud, Not Buddy. Bud, Not Buddy is the first novel to receive both the Coretta Scott King Award and the Newbery Medal...
) for Book-It Repertory Theatre Seattle, WA. The production premiered at Langston Hughes
Langston Hughes
James Mercer Langston Hughes was an American poet, social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist. He was one of the earliest innovators of the then-new literary art form jazz poetry. Hughes is best known for his work during the Harlem Renaissance...
Cultural Arts Center in a critically acclaimed workshop production in 2006, and mounted in a fully staged production on Book-It's home stage at the Center House Theatre the following year. It has since been produced at the Children’s Theatre Company in Minneapolis, Main Street Theatre in Houston, Chicago Playworks, and at the University of Michigan. Jackson's adaptation won the Distinguished Play Award from The American Alliance for Theater and Education in 2010. It was published by Dramatic Publishing in 2009.
Was sung in lefty Lewis house