Bud, Not Buddy Blog Post #3

Leonardo

Title: Bud, Not Buddy

Author: Christopher Paul Curtis

Genre: Historical Fiction

Pages: 96/236

In the last week of reading, there have been many surprises in the book. The most important events have been that Bud and Bugs arrived at Hooverville, a "cardboard jungle." Hooverville is a village made of tents and shacks that was built for people that were going west and needed a place to sleep. In Hooverville, many things have happened. First off, Bud and Bugs got food, water, and a place to sleep. Another thing that has happened is that Bud kissed a girl for the first time. This girl lives in Hooverville with her mom, and the two kissed while they were washing the dishes in a creak that passed through the village. The next morning, however, Bud was awaken by screaming men and their sons. They were all running to catch the train heading to Chicago, which was the only train passing for the next month. Of course, in the chaos, Bud can't get to the in time, and is left in Hooverville with just a few other people who weren't able to get on. Poor Bud is now alone after Bugs took the train and left him. As he was walking back to Hooverville, he saw the police burning the village. Being a determined kid, Bud goes back to the library, reads about how long it would take to reach Grand Rapids, and leaves!  From this information, I think that Hooverville was Bud's destiny. His first kiss, him missing the train, these are all signs that Bud was supposed to end up in Hooverville and I think that in the end of the book Bud will return to Hooverville. These events have affected Bud because now he feels lost, alone, without a home or family. They haven't really affected the relationships in any particular way.

From what I have read, I think that the book was worth the price. I think that the dialect used by the author really has a major positive effect on the book. I guess my recent reading has fulfilled my expectations. For my continued reading, I expect Bud to encounter many dangers while walking to Grand Rapids. As you can probably tell, I am very satisfied with what I have read so far.

“It’s funny how ideas are, in a lot of ways they’re just like seeds. Both of them start real, real small and then… woop, zoop, sloop… before you can say Jack Robinson they’ve gone and grown a lot bigger than you ever thought they could.” (page 91-92). This passage reveals what Bud thinks about ideas in general. It shows that things may start out small, but in the end, they become huge. This passage intrigues me because it makes me realize that Bud isn’t all that dumb, so it makes me want to continue reading and find out if this is the only smart thing that Bud will say. I don’t think it will, so let’s hope the author does tell us more about Bud’s ideas and ways of thinking.