#tbt: Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy by Gary D. Schmidt

Image: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy by Gary D. Schmidt. 220 p. Clarion Books/ Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2004. 9780618439293.

#tbt features Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy by Gary D. Schmidt. This book was published in 2004 and was awarded both a Newbery and Printz Honor at the Youth Media Awards the following January. The story is based on true events that happened in Maine in the early part of the 20th century. Malaga Island was the legal residence of former slaves and free Black men and women. It was also prime real estate that the town leaders of Phippsburg were eyeing for development as a resort. Turner Buckminster and his parents are newcomers to Phippsburg, with his father recently installed as minister. He befriends Lizzie Bright and together they discover the plan and fight against it. 

Schmidt beautifully depicts the Maine setting and creates unforgettable characters in Lizzie Bright.