Bud, Not Buddy

A kids' novel about a plucky orphan who is not Harry Potter? What awful timing! Happily, though, Curtis (a Newbery Medal honoree) has conjured a hero just as mesmerizing but grittier. Ten-year-old Bud Caldwell ditches his foster home in Depression-era Flint, Mich., and heads for the jazz clubs of Grand Rapids in search of his long-lost dad. A gentle diva, based on Flint's own Betty Carter, shows Bud that a family exists whenever folks decide to stick together. Kids will take to Bud's hilarious advice for "becoming a better liar." But be warned: they may also insist on learning to play sax.

--By Martha Pickerill