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Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis
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Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis
Paperback $8.99
Jan 08, 2002 | ISBN 9780440413288

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    Jan 08, 2002 | ISBN 9780440413288 | Middle Grade (10 and up)

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    Sep 14, 2004 | ISBN 9780553494105 | Middle Grade (10 and up)

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    Sep 07, 1999 | ISBN 9780385323062 | Middle Grade (10 and up)

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  • Nov 13, 2001 | ISBN 9780385729956 | Middle Grade (10 and up)

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  • Jul 05, 2000 | ISBN 9780553750560 | Middle Grade (10 and up)

    315 Minutes

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Product Details

Praise

AN ALA BEST BOOK FOR YOUNG ADULTS
AN ALA NOTABLE CHILDREN’S BOOK
AN IRA CHILDREN’S BOOK AWARD WINNER
NAMED TO 14 STATE AWARD LISTS

 
“The book is a gem, of value to all ages, not just the young people to whom it is aimed.” —The Christian Science Monitor
 
“Will keep readers engrossed from first page to last.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review
 
“Curtis writes with a razor-sharp intelligence that grabs the reader by the heart and never lets go. . . . This highly recommended title [is] at the top of the list of books to be read again and again.” —Voice of Youth Advocates, starred review

Awards

ALA Best Books for Young Adults WINNER 2000

ALA Notable Children’s Book WINNER 2000

Arizona Young Reader’s Award WINNER 2002

Arizona Young Readers Award WINNER 2002

Coretta Scott King Author Award WINNER 2000

Coretta Scott King Author Honor WINNER 2000

Hawaii Nene Award WINNER 2002

IRA Children’s Book Award for Older Readers WINNER

Kansas William White Award WINNER 2002

Kentucky Bluegrass Award WINNER 2001

Kentucky Bluegrass Master List WINNER 2001

Maine Student Book Award WINNER 2000

Mark Twain Award WINNER 2000

New Mexico Land of Enchantment Book Award WINNER 2003

Newbery Medal Winner WINNER 2000

Pacific Northwest Young Readers Choice Award WINNER 2002

Pennsylvania Keystone State Reading Association Book Award WINNER

Pennsylvania Young Readers Choice Award WINNER

Publishers Weekly Best Children’s Book of the Year WINNER

Scholastic Parent & Child 100 Greatest Books for Kids WINNER 2012

School Library Journal Best Book of the Year WINNER

South Dakota Prairie Pasque Award WINNER

Tennessee Volunteer State Award WINNER 2001

Tennessee Volunteer State Book Award WINNER 2001

Vermont Dorothy Canfield Fischer Book Award WINNER

Illinois Rebecca Caudill Young Readers Award NOMINEE 2002

Illinois Rebecca Caudill Young Readers’ Book Award NOMINEE 2002

Illinois–Rebecca Caudill Young Reeaders’ Book Award NOMINEE 2002

ALSC Notable Children’s Recordings SELECTION 2001

Louisiana Young Reader’s Choice Award FINALIST 2002

Massachusetts Children’s Book Award FINALIST 2002

Author Q&A

Born in Flint, Michigan, Christopher Paul Curtis spent his first 13 years after high school on the assembly line of Flint’s historic Fisher Body Plant #1. His job entailed hanging doors, and it left him with an aversion to getting into and out of large automobiles-particularly big Buicks.

Curtis’s writing-and his dedication to it-has been greatly influenced by his family. With grandfathers like Earl “Lefty” Lewis, a Negro Baseball League pitcher, and 1930s bandleader Herman E. Curtis, Sr., of “Herman Curtis and the Dusky Devastators of the Depression,” it is easy to see why Christopher Paul Curtis was destined to become an entertainer.

In Bud, Not Buddy, Curtis tells the story of 10-year-old Bud Caldwell, who hits the road in search of his father and his home. Times may be hard in 1936 Flint, Michigan, but orphaned Bud’s got a few things going for him; he believes his mother left a clue of who his father was-and nothing can stop Bud from trying to find him.

Curtis’ debut novel, The Watsons Go to Birmingham-1963, received both a Newbery Honor and a Coretta Scott King Honor in 1996. It tells the story of 10-year-old Kenny and his family, the Weird Watsons of Flint, Michigan, and their unforgettable journey that leads them into one of the darkest moments in American history. It is by turns a hilarious, touching, and tragic story about civil rights and the impact of violence on one family.

fun facts

Born
May 10, in Flint, Michigan

Inspiration for writing
I believe that young people are often blessed with the best ears for detecting what rings true or what feels right in a particular piece of writing. To me the highest accolade comes when a young reader tells me, “I really liked your book.” The young seem to be able to say “really” with a clarity, a faith, and an honesty that we adults have long forgotten. That is why I write.

Previous jobs
Factory worker, campaign worker, maintenance man, customer service representative, warehouse clerk, purchasing clerk

Favorite hobbies
Playing basketball, collecting old record albums, writing

Favorite foods
Mexican, Indian, West Indian

Favorite books
Anything by Toni Morrison, Kurt Vonnegut, and Zora Neale Hurston

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