The Legend of Buddy Bush

About This Book

The day Uncle Goodwin "Buddy" Bush came from Harlem all the way back home to Rehobeth Road in Rich Square, North Carolina, is the day Pattie Mae Sheals' life changes forever.

Pattie Mae adores and admires Uncle Buddy — he's tall and handsome and he doesn't believe in the country stuff most people believe in, like ghosts and stepping off the sidewalk to let white folks pass. He unsettles the dust and brings fresh ideas to Rehobeth Road. But when Buddy's deliberate inattention to the protocol of 1947 North Carolina lands him in jail for a crime against a white woman that he didn't commit, Pattie Mae and her family are suddenly set to journeying on the long, hard road that leads from loss and rage to forgiveness and pride.

In this powerful historical novel based on actual events, Pattie Mae uses frank language as she tells the story of what happened when her Uncle Buddy. In North Carolina in 1947, a black man charged with the attempted rape of white woman was in grave danger. How Buddy, and the African American community faced this situation shows how injustice can sometimes inspire courage and pride.

Shelia P. Moses tells a moving and lyrical story in The Legend of Buddy Bush that introduces the remarkable and memorable character of Pattie Mae Sheals — a girl whose sense of humor, ability to get into "grown folks business," and determination to know the truth will endear her to readers everywhere.

A Coretta Scott King Author Honor Book

A National Book Award Finalist