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Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy
- By Gary D. Schmidt
- Genre: Historical Fiction
Common Sense Media says
A preacher's son stands up to a racist town.
Parents say
QUALITY
Kids say
QUALITY
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that this tragic novel is based on actual events and offers much for discussion, which might spur readers on to further research. In addition to its depiction of racism in early 20th-century New England, there are relationships of many kinds to explore, moral growth and change in several characters, majority vs. minority rights, and unintended consequences of one's actions. Its lyrical and metaphorical writing are terrific examples for writing classes.
What's the story?
Turner, newly arrived in a small coastal town in Maine where his father is to be the new minister, is immediately an outcast, despised by the children, watched incessantly by the suspicious adults, and ground down by his rigid father. His life is wretched and lonely until he meets Lizzie Bright, granddaughter of the minister on the nearby island of Malaga, an impoverished community of slave descendants. Lizzie is tough, smart, and wise, and with her and her community Turner feels at home in a way he never will in his own home.
But the town wants to attract tourists, and the first step is the elimination of the Malaga community. Turner's father, beset and manipulated by the Deacons of his church, supports their efforts, leaving only Turner to stand up for what is right. But doing the right thing is far more complicated than it seems and, as Lizzie often tells him, he "never can look at things straight."
Is it any good?
This complex and powerful novel deserves its Newbery Honor. Its richness of language and metaphorical meaning, as well as its three-dimensional and evolving characters, are well summed up in a line from the end of Charles Darwin's Origin of Species, which the author quotes near the end of the book: "From so simple a beginning endless forms most beautiful and most wonderful have been, and are being, evolved."
The beautiful and wonderful forms that evolve here are the characters and their relationships and viewpoints, all complex, and all undergoing change. There's Turner, of course, struggling to live up to his father's teachings even when his father doesn't; Mrs. Cobb, a crusty old racist who learns to love a black girl and an ill-mannered boy; Willis, who seems to be a bully but has an ironclad sense of what's right; his father, Deacon Hurd, whose pride goeth before a fall; and many others, a Dickensian wealth of real characters. And evolution is not just individual -- the relationships and understandings between the characters change, and change again. This lovely, heartbreaking, and very real story doesn't always go where you think it will, but in the end it goes to a movingly spiritual place.
What families can talk about
Families can talk about the challenges of standing up for something you believe in when popular opinion is against you.
Would you have behaved any differently than Turner did if you had been
in the same situation?What prompted Turner's father to change his mind
about his son's actions?This tale was based on a true story, but which
elements were factual -- and which were fictionalized for dramatic
effect?
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AGE
A Great Tale of Friendship
When Turner and his parents move Phippsburg, Maine Turner find life dull and stifling until he meets Lizzie Bright Griffin, a young African American girl from a nearby island. The two young children form a close bond despite Turner's fathers disapproval. The elders at Turner's fathers church decide that if they want to bring tourists in they would have to remove people on Malaga Island which is where Lizzie lives with her family.
This story paints of picture of racism in the early 20th century. It is a touching story but sad at the same time. It shows how young people can grown and mature drastically in front of a reader's eyes.
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AGE
This book is based on the fate of Malaga Island in Phippsburg, Maine in the early 20th century. It is a deep and intriguing story of racism and friendship. This book broadened my history and view of my community and awareness of how much we have gown in the past hundred years yet the work we still have to do. Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy challenges the reader to look upon their own views and conceptions of racism.
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I liked the book and read it in a week. The message about racisim is powerful but there is a lot of fights.
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Great for the classroom
This is a great book to use in the classroom (maybe as a read-aloud) to introduce children to the concepts of racism and discrimination. It could lead to many positive discussions of how people are treated vs. how they should be treated.
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good book for tweens that l recommend you read
This is a great book for tweens like me. It is a very educational read that will teach kids about a community hardly ever heard of in history.
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Perfect for sixth grade and beyond
I absolutely loved this book! The message was so good and the characters were amazing. I would very highly reccomend this book to anyone looking for a good read!
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AGE
i think that this book is very good and interesting and it makes you think over and over is this really how they treated the Malaga Islanders back then or did this really happen? It's a good book and it draws marvelous conclusions and events. But it's somewhat confusing so you need to read the book like 2 times to really understand it. Also, it's very good with putting you inside the character like if i was Turner i would tore Wiliis and his little behind up. It also has challenging vocabulary but it's good to learn the things in it and it is an extremely amazing book. Cudo's to Gary Schmidt!!!!!!!!
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my opininon
i think this book is magnificant to me i would recomend this to anyone who wants to read a fantastic book.
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| Author: | Gary D. Schmidt |
| Book type: | Fiction |
| Genre: | Historical Fiction |
| Publisher: | Clarion Books |
| Publication date: | March 20, 2005 |
| Number of pages: | 219 |
| Hardcover price: | $15.00 |
| Publisher's recommended age(s): | 10 - 14 |
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