Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy

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Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy
Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy (Schmidt, 2004).jpg
1st ed cover (Clarion, 2004)
Author Gary D. Schmidt
LanguageEnglish
Genre Historical fiction
PublisherClarion Books
Publication date
2004
Publication placeUnited States

Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy is a young adult historical novel by Gary D. Schmidt published by Clarion Books in 2004. The book received the Newbery Honor in 2005 and was selected as a Michael L. Printz Honor [1] that same year.

The book was based on a real event. In 1912, the government of Maine put the residents of Malaga Island in a mental hospital and tore up their homes. [2]

Plot summary

This book is set in 1912. Turner Buckminster, a minister's son, has just moved from Boston, Massachusetts to Phippsburg, Maine and is constantly being scolded for simple misunderstandings, not to mention being automatically disliked by the boys of Phippsburg for being bad at baseball. Turner meets a black girl, Lizzie Bright Griffin, who becomes friends with him, despite his difficulty with social situations. Turner tries to save Lizzie's family and friends before they all must leave, or worse, get put into an insane asylum in New Gloucester, Maine (where they do eventually end up). But that means standing up to the authorities, including Turner's father.

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References

  1. "Michael L. Printz Winners and Honor Books". 2010. Archived from the original on 2011-02-17. Retrieved 2011-02-03.
  2. Dubrule, Deborah (1 August 2005). "Malaga, revisited: On a Casco Bay island, a shameful incident in Maine's history comes to light". The Working Waterfront. the Island Institute. Retrieved 6 February 2015.