Review of Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy

Bibliography

Schmidt, Gary D. Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy. New York: Clarion Books, 2004. ISBN: 0618439293

Plot Summary

In 1911, Turner Buckminster hates his new home of Phippsburg, Maine, but things improve when he meets Lizzie Bright Griffin, a girl from a poor, nearby island community founded by former slaves that the town fathers, and Turner's, want to change into a tourist spot

Critical Analysis

It’s 1912 and 13 year old Turner Buckminster and his family have just moved to Phippsburg, Maine from Boston where Turner’s father in the new minister of the First Congregational Church.  Turner has a hard time fitting in.  Everything is different, they even play baseball differently in Maine.  Then one day Turner meets Lizzie, an African-American girl from nearby Malaga Island.  Lizzie teaches him how to play Maine style baseball, how to harvest clams, and takes him out in her boat to watch the whales.  Everything changes when the town elders plan to boost the town’s economy with tourism and decide that the African-American community of former slaves on Malaga Island needs to be removed.  Through a series of tragic events we witness the growth of Turner from the miserable boy who first arrived into a thoughtful, compassionate young man.

This novel is based on the true story of the removal of the residents of Malaga Island and Schmidt does a good job building credible characters that touch the reader’s emotions.  It is a tragic story of greed and power.  There is no happily-ever-after, but I believe readers will connect with the honesty of the characters and story.

  

Awards and Excerpts

John Newbery Medal, 2005 Honor Book United States

Lupine Award, 2004 Honor Book Maine

Michael L. Printz Award, 2005 Honor United States

Thumbs Up! Award, 2005 Honor Book Michigan

Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children's Book Award, 2005-2006 ; Nominee; Vermont

Garden State Teen Book Award, 2007 ; Nominee; Fiction Grades 6-8; New Jersey

Isinglass Teen Read Award, 2005-2006 ; Nominee; New Hampshire

Maine Student Book Award, 2005-2006 ; Nominee; Maine

Sequoyah Book Award, 2007 ; Nominee; Young Adult; Oklahoma

Virginia Readers' Choice Award, 2007-2008 ; Nominee; Middle; Virginia

Volunteer State Book Award, 2006-2007 ; Nominee; Grades 7-12 (YA); Tennessee

West Virginia Children's Book Award, 2006-2007 ; Master Booklist; West Virginia

Young Hoosier Book Award, 2006-2007 ; Nominee; Middle Grades; Indiana

School Library Journal review excerpt:  “Schmidt's writing is infused with feeling and rich in imagery. With fully developed, memorable characters and a fascinating, little-known piece of history, this novel will leave a powerful impression on readers.”

Booklist review excerpt: “Schmidt weaves history into a powerful tale of friendship and coming-of-age, adding a lyrical sense of the coastal landscape. Characters are drawn without reverence in this haunting combination of fact and fiction that has a powerful and tragic climax”

Connections

Other Books by Gary D Schmidt:

Okay For Now, 2011

Trouble, 2010

The Wednesday Wars, 2007

Straw Into Gold, 2001


Gary D. Schmidt based his novel on true events.  Do your own research and learn more about Phippsburg, Maine and Malaga Island.