First published 2004
Bud Caldwell clutches his battered suitcase as he escapes another foster home in 1936 Flint, Michigan. The ten-year-old has been on his own since his mother died, but he carries something that might change everything: old concert flyers for Herman E. Calloway and his band, the Dusky Devastators of the Depression. His mother left these papers behind, and Bud believes they point to his father's identity. Armed with his personal survival guide he calls "Bud Caldwell's Rules and Things for Having a Funner Life and Making a Better Liar Out of Yourself," he sets out across Depression-era Michigan to track down the mysterious bandleader. The journey tests every rule Bud has learned about staying alive on the streets. Hunger stalks him, strangers threaten him, and his own fears nearly defeat him. When he finally confronts Herman E. Calloway, Bud discovers that finding your family means more than just locating the right person.
Genres: american-fiction, 20th-century, coming-of-age, african-american-historical-fiction
Vibes: atmospheric, emotional, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, found-family
Setting: Flint, Michigan
Period: 1936
288 pages · Mass Market Paperback · Laurel Leaf