Bud, Not Buddy characters

Appears from the start

A ten-year-old Black boy living in Michigan during the Great Depression. Orphaned after his mother's death, he guards a suitcase containing her few keepsakes and follows a private set of rules that helps him make sense of adults. Resourceful, observant, and determined to choose his own identity, he dislikes being called Buddy.

Appears from the start

A younger boy from the orphanage who is placed in the same foster home as Bud. His distress about leaving prompts Bud to explain what experience has taught him about temporary homes.

First appears in chapter 2

The Amoses' twelve-year-old son, who bullies Bud and provokes a fight, then presents himself to his parents as the victim. His treatment of Bud helps bring the foster placement to a quick end.

First appears in chapter 2

Bud's foster mother in the Amos household. She accepts Todd's account of their fight, confines Bud in a shed for the night, and plans to return him to the authorities.

First appears in chapter 5

Bud's late mother, remembered through his suitcase, photographs, stones, and fragments of advice. She insisted on his proper name and left clues whose meaning he is trying to understand.

First appears in chapter 7

A friend of Bud's from the orphanage who finds him after his escape. Bugs proposes that they travel west together by hopping a freight train and introduces Bud to the Hooverville outside Flint.

First appears in chapter 8

A girl Bud meets in the Hooverville community. She shares food and conversation with him and gives him a brief glimpse of companionship amid families displaced by the Depression.

First appears in chapter 10

A union organizer and careful driver who finds Bud walking toward Grand Rapids. Bud initially mistrusts him, but Lefty feeds him, gives him shelter with his family, and undertakes to deliver him safely to the man Bud is seeking.

First appears in chapter 11

Lefty Lewis's daughter, who welcomes Bud into her home and provides the food, bath, and ordinary family care that he has been missing.

Also known as Herman E. Calloway

First appears in chapter 13

The stern leader and bassist of the Dusky Devastators of the Depression. Bud believes a collection of old performance flyers proves that Calloway is his father, but the formidable bandleader is suspicious of the boy and rejects the claim.

Also known as Mr. Jimmy

First appears in chapter 13

The horn player and practical spokesman for Calloway's band. He listens to Bud's story, treats him with patience, and helps ensure that the boy is fed and given a place among the musicians while his claim is considered.

First appears in chapter 13

The band's saxophonist, whose warm manner balances Calloway's severity. He explains the group's customs, gives Bud a band name, and helps welcome him into its extended family.

First appears in chapter 14

A singer associated with the band and one of the adults who immediately responds to Bud with kindness. She helps him settle into the band's home and takes his needs seriously.