“Grandpa and Uncle Buddy are my daddies and that’s that. End of story.” Problem is, Grandpa has died and Uncle Buddy has gone north, escaping the Klan, as reported in The Legend of Buddy Bush (2004). Twelve-year-old Pattie Mae Sheals heads to Harlem to find Uncle Buddy and convince him to come back home, where he belongs. Drawing on her own rich family life in North Carolina, Moses writes with affection about a place and time, 1947, while showing the dangers of being black in the South. With the help of a friend she makes in Harlem—Richard Wright, the writer—Pattie Mae begins to appreciate Uncle Buddy’s need to be in Harlem, “where a man can be a man.” What’s special about this is Pattie Mae’s voice. She is a likable narrator with spirit, and readers will enjoy spending time with her on Rehobeth Road, learning about her family, visiting Harlem, witnessing Uncle Buddy’s trial and getting a lesson in southern justice. (Fiction. 10+)
