Bud, Not Buddy (11)

Book cover.

Curtis, C.P. (1999). Bud, not Buddy. New York: Dell Laurel-Leaf.

Imagine all you have fitting into a single suitcase held together by a piece of twine. That all you have is a blanket, some rocks, a few old paper flyers, and not much else. That you pack it all up to go on a Great Depression era journey to find out who you are. And imagine you're only 10 when you do it.

Bud, Not Buddy tells the title character's journey from orphan to sojourner to determine who his father is. Since his father had never been in his life, Bud was left alone at the age of 6 after his mother died unexpectedly. Unsatisfied with life as an orphan and a mistreated foster child, Bud embarks to find out more about his father, all the while adding humor to the story with his ongoing insights on life as told through his guidebook Bud Caldwell's Rules and Things for Having a Funner Life and Making a Better Liar out of Yourself. The rules he lists demonstrate the life journey he's endured as well as the insights he's had into his surroundings, as seen in "Rules and Things #16: If a Grown-up Ever Starts a Sentence by Saying "Haven't You Heard," Get Ready, 'Cause What's About to Come Out of Their Mouth is Gonna Drop You Headfirst into a Boiling Tragedy." 

Grab a copy of the Newbery Medal and Coretta Scott King Award winning Bud, Not Buddy and see what other guidelines he has to make your own life funner*.

*Please note that it is supposed to say funner, as used by Bud in the book! :) 

The Devil's Arithmetic (7)

Yolen, J. (1988). The devil's arithmetic. New York: Scholastic Inc. 

Book cover.

Jane Yolen's young adult fiction novel The Devil's Arithmetic chronicles the story of 12 year old Hannah Stern in a flashback plot. The novel begins in modern America at the dinner table of Hannah's relatives, where they are celebrating the Jewish custom of Seder (the dinner marking the beginning of Passover). During the dinner, Hannah is chosen to open the door to welcome the prophet Elijah (another Jewish custom). As she opens the door, the sees not the hallway of the apartment building she and her family are in, but turns around to find unfamiliar surroundings and people she doesn't know. The majority of the remainder of the story is set during the 1940s in Europe, where Hannah, now known as Chaya, struggles between her future and the "present" past in which she finds herself. Hannah gets swept into the action of her new surroundings, being taken to the wedding of her uncle Schmuel with her aunt Gitl. She soon makes new friends on the journey to the wedding, which is in a neighboring village. However, upon arriving in the village, Hannah and the group of wedding guests are taken captive in Nazi trucks, and ultimately arrive at a concentration camp. Although no specific setting is identified, the integral setting of 1940s Nazi occupied Europe is easily distinguished. Hannah then strives to survive in the concentration camp as more and more of her new friends and family die. Ultimately, she realizes the importance of remembering, the key theme of not only the book, but of the holiday she and her family had been celebrating at the story's start.

Clearly, with a strong focus on Jewish culture and traditions as well as the Yiddish language, The Devil's Arithmetic makes for an eye-opening multicultural selection. Even the main character of Hannah is surprised to find that she can absorb what should be unfamiliar language and customs as part of the magic of her time-traveling experience. Because of the presentation of much Yiddish language, the book would make for an excellent presentation on teaching students to be aware of jargon and cultural influences on texts.

The Devil's Arithmetic has received numerous awards. Among numerous others, the book received the Sydney Taylor Award from the Association of Jewish Libraries, the Jewish Book Council Award, and the National Jewish Book Award for Children's Literature in 1989. The book was also made into a film version. Although the content contains some indications of the violence typical of of discussions pertaining to the Holocaust, it is a work that would be powerful for pre-teen and early teen audiences.

The Always Prayer Shawl (2)

Book cover. 

Oberman, S. (1994). The always prayer shawl. Honesdale: Boyds Mills Press.

The Always Prayer Shawl by Sheldon Oberman presents an immediate focus on things that change versus things that remain the same. The story focuses on the main character, Adam, a boy who is born and raised in Russia, but, because of the conflict of war and famine, must immigrate with his family to the United States. Prior to leaving Russia, Adam spends time talking with and learning from his grandfather, who teaches him that circumstances may change, but some things--such as what the prayer shawl he gives Adam represents, or the fact that Adam will always be Adam--never change. The events of the plot thus make the story one that is realistic fiction and to some degree historical fiction (some events occur in the past, while some are closer to present time).

The illustrations transition from black and white
to color to mark Adam's transition from childhood to adulthood.

The illustrations of the picture book are significant to the story line. For approximately the first half of the book, that presenting Adam's childhood, the book has only black and white illustrations. However, when the story transitions to Adam's adult life, the illustrations become color. All of the artwork is realistic, detailed, and completed in the medium of paint.

The story is strongly focused on Jewish culture and traditions, including that of family, heritage, and prayer. Thus, with a focus on change, it is easy to detect a theme of conditions changing, but faith remaining constant. Even though readers of different faiths may read the book, they could easily relate to the contrasts it draws between what Adam experiences as a child and what his grandson experiences ("I got eggs from a chicken, not from a store. I chopped wood for heat. I did not turn a dial."), a conversation that occurs between generations of all cultural and religious backgrounds.

The story proved easy to read, with some patterned, repetitive sentence structures that were easily understandable and provided rhythm. The author also used repetition throughout the book, in such lines as, "So he sewed on a new one," and, "Some things change. Some things don't." 

Despite cultural differences, I found the story very relatable and relevant. It has no doubt been widely well-received, as indicated by the abundance of awards it has received, including the Sydney Taylor Book Award and the National Jewish Book Award. It was also featured on the ALA Booklist's Best Books Of The Year list and as a Reading Rainbow Book.