Not only is Turner Buckminster the son of the new minister in a small Maine town, he is shunned for playing baseball differently than the local boy...
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Mar 09, 2009
Andrea
rated it: 
Alright...I have so much to say about this book...this is a winner, a really good book. Excellent. My first Printz Award book for this class. More soon.
Okay..Here's the "more soon" part. This book won the Printz Award, and I really like how they describe their criteria for literary excellence and quality on their website by what it is not. For example, a book is not quality simply by being popular. Although, of course, the two are not mutually exclusive. This book do More...
Okay..Here's the "more soon" part. This book won the Printz Award, and I really like how they describe their criteria for literary excellence and quality on their website by what it is not. For example, a book is not quality simply by being popular. Although, of course, the two are not mutually exclusive. This book do More...
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(9 people liked it)
Mar 24, 2008
Tiff
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Wow. This was an incredibly written, heartbreaking tale. I absolutely loved it. I listened to it on CD while traveling, and so many times I wanted to pull my car over, rewind, and write down a quote from the book. The writing was just amazing. What more can I say.
2 comments
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(5 people liked it)
Jan 19, 2008
Krista the Krazy Kataloguer
rated it: 
The friendship between a preacher's son and a black girl in 1912 Maine is tested by the prejudice of the townspeople. Great character development. It was good, but I wouldn't have given it a Newbery honor book award.
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Aug 17, 2008
coreyc
rated it: 
If I hadn't come to the book with such a hardy mistrust of children's-book-awards and their accompanying cliches, my skepticism might never have been tickled. With that baggage in tow, however, I couldn't help noting each time a stock figure or a cliche appeared. By halfway through the book, I had a mental checklist: "crazy" old lady who is actually subversive and intuitive? check. small boy against the capitalist machine? check. small town as a microcosm of the world (or at least nati
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(4 people liked it)
Feb 23, 2008
Allyson Faith
rated it:
This is a young adult novel that I've been hearing about for the last year. It is remarkable, and I now wish I'd read it earlier. I want everyone I know to read it --it's that good. It's set in 1912 in a small town in Maine. The main character is the teenage son of a minister who has a new job in this town--so this boy, Turner, his father and mother move from Boston to Maine. Turner doesn't hit it off with the local boys, but one day when beachcombing he meets Lizzie Bright--one of the young Afr
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(3 people liked it)
Nov 10, 2007
Vanna
rated it:
This book is a very well-written, very entertaining book set in 1912 about a minister's son who moves to Phippsburg, a small town in Massachusetts, when his dad is asked to pastor the church in that small seaside town. When he arrives, our 13 year old protagonist doesn't get along with any of the other kids from that town and ends up befriending a young girl who lives on a nearby island called Malaga.
The problem is that the people of Phippsburg are trying to evict all persons living More...
The problem is that the people of Phippsburg are trying to evict all persons living More...
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(1 person liked it)
Jan 23, 2012
Katherine
rated it:
This books generates so much emotion out of you that when it ends you are angry. This book deals with pressure to play the part as the new Minister's son, or the Officer's kid, or whatever you may be.
On top of being the "new kid" Turner is a Minister's son and as such expected by the town to set a good example for everyone else. The story is set in a time where skin color and ansestry mattered. When Turner runs away from the other boys because everything is the same in theory More...
On top of being the "new kid" Turner is a Minister's son and as such expected by the town to set a good example for everyone else. The story is set in a time where skin color and ansestry mattered. When Turner runs away from the other boys because everything is the same in theory More...
Jan 09, 2012
Jan
rated it:
This is why I keep reading....Because every once in awhile a book comes along that changes me and becomes part of me forever. I'll always remember who I was when I read it. I'll wish I had written it but I'll know I never could, though I'll draw inspiration and courage from it, for both writing and living.
Quick, ten books that have done this, and the age at which I read them: Anne of Green Gables (11). The Once and Future King (13). A Separate Peace (16). Dr. Zhivago (17). The Chosen More...
Quick, ten books that have done this, and the age at which I read them: Anne of Green Gables (11). The Once and Future King (13). A Separate Peace (16). Dr. Zhivago (17). The Chosen More...
Jan 04, 2012
Shanna
rated it:
Turner Buckminster, the new minister's son, has great trouble fitting into his new town, but he finds friendship with Lizzie, one of the despised former slaves "squatting" on a nearby island. When the small shanty settlement is driven away to make room for tourism, Turner attempts to defend Lizzie, standing against overwhelming social pressure. Throughout this story, the young people's friendship is developed with subtlety, depth, and a mild romantic tension. Lizzie is portrayed as
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Nov 03, 2011
Lisa
rated it:
Turner Buckminster moves to Maine when his father takes a position as a minister in Phippsburg in the early 1900's. Turner becomes friends with Lizzie Bright who is from a poor island community founded by former slaves. As he develops relationships with Lizzie and others from the town, he faces prejudice and other social difficulties. It is interesting to watch the growth of the characters as they face adversity. While the book addresses some tough topics, it also has its lighter moments as well
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(3 people liked it)
Oct 26, 2011
Natasha
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Lizzy Bright is a "colored" girl who lives on Malaga Island in Maine. Turner Buckminster is the son of the new minister in the nearby town, Phippsburg. He isn't readily accepted by the boys of the town, in fact, he gets bullied pretty bad. This novel is the growing-up story of Turner, learning to stand up for what's right even when everyone else is against you. Turner befriends certain people, and bad things seem to happen to all of them. Mrs. Hurd is taken to the asylum so that her so
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Jul 27, 2011
Jeannie
rated it:
Devastating and beautiful. A lingering read, but worth it. The story takes place in the early 1900s and is based on real events that destroyed a community in coastal Maine. Turner and Lizzie forge a deep friendship despite racial barriers but can they ultimately overcome the corruption and prejudice of the town's elders?
This book is certainly a good historical read, but I found myself thinking about gentrification in Washington D.C. and what that means to a city in which the African-Ame More...
This book is certainly a good historical read, but I found myself thinking about gentrification in Washington D.C. and what that means to a city in which the African-Ame More...
Jun 08, 2011
Jessica
rated it: 
I'm sorry to say I didn't like this book at all. It wasn't terrible, I just found it terribly boring. I actually fell asleep twice while reading it, and almost fell asleep a bunch more times throughout. I think it's just Gary Schmidt's writing style. I've never been very fond of overly descriptive narration. At least half of this book is just description, and most of it not essential description, or at least it felt like it to me. I also didn't like the ending. I understand that this book was ba
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Mar 12, 2011
Haley
rated it:
Gary D. Schmidt's Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy is a book about a late nineteenth-early twentieth century teenage boy who has to go against the people of Phippsburg, Maine, to agree with his conscience. Turner Buckminster III is the son of a minister who strongly desires to escape his life and "light out for the territories." Being a minister's son requires a picture-perfect image that is nearly impossible to reach. Ridiculed by many and constantly judged by the townsp
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Mar 01, 2011
Linda
rated it:
Once again Schmidt did it! He wrote an outstandingly beautiful book dealing with very complex, gritty issues.
This book was written before The Wednesday Wars and received the 1995 Newbery Honor award. It is particularly poignant, outstandingly breathtaking and incredibly tragic.
Based upon true occurrences of race-related issues in Phippsbubrg, Maine, the setting is the early 1900's wherein an interracial community of African Americans, who were rich in values and culture, More...
This book was written before The Wednesday Wars and received the 1995 Newbery Honor award. It is particularly poignant, outstandingly breathtaking and incredibly tragic.
Based upon true occurrences of race-related issues in Phippsbubrg, Maine, the setting is the early 1900's wherein an interracial community of African Americans, who were rich in values and culture, More...
Jan 09, 2011
Teton County Library Call Number: YA SCHMIDT
No rating
A fantastic read! This book takes place in Maine in the early 1900's when a young boy, Turner Buckminster, moves from Boston so his father can be the new town minister of Phippsburg. immediately, Turner feels like he will not fit in when his style of baseball difers from that of the local boys and his is afraid to jump off the cliffs into the icy ocean water. When he goes to spend some time alone on the beach, away from t More...
No rating
A fantastic read! This book takes place in Maine in the early 1900's when a young boy, Turner Buckminster, moves from Boston so his father can be the new town minister of Phippsburg. immediately, Turner feels like he will not fit in when his style of baseball difers from that of the local boys and his is afraid to jump off the cliffs into the icy ocean water. When he goes to spend some time alone on the beach, away from t More...
Dec 08, 2010
Julie
rated it:
The first Gary Schmidt book I read was First Boy, which was a disaster of a book for me. Schmidt came to speak to my class a couple of months ago and I resolved to give him another read. Lizzie Bright, though not technically "southern literature", deals with many of the same themes so brilliantly that it secured a place in my heart. Schmidt gives a great deal of history along with a moving tale about what it means to be Christian in a segregated world. Turner is such an interesting
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Dec 08, 2010
Jenna
rated it:
I really enjoyed reading this book. I love historical fiction and it is part of the reason why I decided to be a history major. When I read a novel like Lizzie Bright, it makes me want to study the subject more, find out what really happened and why. Historical fiction has the ability to grab my interest and make me really feel for the characters. I want to be a history teacher because history is about stories, people, and cultures. Too often, historians take the stories out of history and
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Dec 08, 2010
Megan
rated it:
In this novel, a young minister's son, Turner, moves with his family to the small coastal town of Phippsburg. Turner arrives at Phippsburg asa a young boy, unable to hit a baseball iwth a softball pitch, and the story ends when he has matured and been enlightened with burning knowledge of the world. Much of this burning knowledge was ascertained by reading Charles Darwin's works, but even more of the knowledge came from his experiences with death and hardship. He witnesses the town weed out t
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Nov 11, 2010
Kristin
rated it:
Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster boy was definitely a cute book. The characters were mostly stock characters though, which was disappointing. The main character, Turner, learns a lot from his father, his mother, Darwin, and the girl he meets on Malaga Island, Lizzie Bright. He learns to stand up for himself, even when it went against his parents' wishes. The theme of racism is very strong in this book, and Turner aims to fight the racism of the town elders, but ultimately fails. This book is tr
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(1 person liked it)
Oct 29, 2010
Sydney
rated it:
The story of Lizzie Bright and the Bunkminster boy is very captivating due to the dynamic relationships and social problems that it brings to light from page one. Turner immediately gains a sense of trust and connection with readers when he comes to Phippsburg. Everyone has felt lonely, out of place, and made fun of before. The narrative is also key to this development of realistic relationships. We see this mental and emotional development through Turner himself. The developmental range of char
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Oct 01, 2010
Sarah
rated it:
Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy
by Gary Schmidt
Coming of age/racism/father-son relationship/Christian faith
Turner Buckminster, the ministers son, moves into the small town of Phippsburg Maine and finds himself struggling to fit in. The town is rigid and unaccepting, and Turner is absolutely miserable. When he meets Lizzie Bright Griffin and experiences life on Malaga Island for the first time he begins to understand what real happiness and freedom feel like. Wh More...
by Gary Schmidt
Coming of age/racism/father-son relationship/Christian faith
Turner Buckminster, the ministers son, moves into the small town of Phippsburg Maine and finds himself struggling to fit in. The town is rigid and unaccepting, and Turner is absolutely miserable. When he meets Lizzie Bright Griffin and experiences life on Malaga Island for the first time he begins to understand what real happiness and freedom feel like. Wh More...
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(1 person liked it)
Aug 03, 2010
Kim
rated it:
I was so engaged by this book. The tragic, historically accurate basis of the story is utterly compelling and led me to read up on the history of Malaga Island and Phippsburg, which I think is a sign of excellent 'historical fiction.'
I love how Schmidt makes the setting another character. This works especially well in the story of Tucker who is unwilling brought to Phippsburg, a town where not even baseball is played how it was in Boston. He is not only a city boy thrust into life in More...
I love how Schmidt makes the setting another character. This works especially well in the story of Tucker who is unwilling brought to Phippsburg, a town where not even baseball is played how it was in Boston. He is not only a city boy thrust into life in More...
Jul 20, 2010
Charley
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
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Jul 02, 2010
Karen
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Jun 10, 2010
Melissa
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Turner is bullied, beaten, struck out, and left out on a raft.
Not a pleasant welcome for the preacher’s kid to Phippsburg, Maine.
I adored author Gary Schmidt’s juvenile novel, The Wednesday Wars, and wanted to follow it up with another of his offerings. Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy, did not disappoint.
From the moment Turner moves to Phippsburg, it seems that everything that can go wrong does: he irritates an elderly resident to the point where he must serve his “time More...
Not a pleasant welcome for the preacher’s kid to Phippsburg, Maine.
I adored author Gary Schmidt’s juvenile novel, The Wednesday Wars, and wanted to follow it up with another of his offerings. Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy, did not disappoint.
From the moment Turner moves to Phippsburg, it seems that everything that can go wrong does: he irritates an elderly resident to the point where he must serve his “time More...
May 20, 2010
Cat
rated it:
Schmidt weaves a delightful and gripping tale as he explores themes of friendship and racism in this historical novel. When Turner Buckminster moves to Maine from Boston, he finds himself in a small, conservative town where his father is the new minister. Turner finds it hard to fit in, as he has a spunky and rebellious streak. Plus, he always seems to be getting his starched church shirts dirty and the neighbors riled up. Turner finds solace in this turn of the 20th century tale when he mee
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May 16, 2010
Lars
rated it:
In 'The Wednesday Wars', Schmidt visited the Vietnam War era. Here he goes back to 1912, just as successfully. But calling 'Lizzie Bright' an historical novel, though it is based on real events, is too limiting.
Like 'Wednesday Wars,' it's about a boy growing up and beyond his father, helped along by a spunky girl and some wise women. Unlike that book, though, it's not completely about finding happy endings. The town of Phippsburg, Maine, did evict the black settlers of neighbor More...
Like 'Wednesday Wars,' it's about a boy growing up and beyond his father, helped along by a spunky girl and some wise women. Unlike that book, though, it's not completely about finding happy endings. The town of Phippsburg, Maine, did evict the black settlers of neighbor More...
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Apr 13, 2010
Genre: diverse populations
Number of Pages: 219
Grade level/age: 6th-12th
Theme: friendship, race relations,racism
Summary:
Turner Buckminster moves to Phippsburg, ME with his mother and father, the new pastor of the local church. On an island just off the coast of Phippsburg resides a community of outcasts. Lizzie Bright is a member of this community. Lizzie and Turner quickly become close, unlikely friends in time when such relationships More...
Number of Pages: 219
Grade level/age: 6th-12th
Theme: friendship, race relations,racism
Summary:
Turner Buckminster moves to Phippsburg, ME with his mother and father, the new pastor of the local church. On an island just off the coast of Phippsburg resides a community of outcasts. Lizzie Bright is a member of this community. Lizzie and Turner quickly become close, unlikely friends in time when such relationships More...
Feb 03, 2010
Sirpa
rated it:
Delightful. Based on historical circumstances, Schmidt, an English professor, sets this award-winning story of friendship and coming-of-age on the Maine coastline in Phippsburg, a town near Malaga Island. The time period is about 1905, when the publication of Charles Darwin's "Origin of the Species" shocked a nation from their slumber. Rich with descriptions of the coastline and the Atlantic shore, the book is evocative without overly long passages. I emerged, having climbed with Tur
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