Buddha Boy by Kathe Koja

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Bibliographic Information:

Buddha Boy by Kathe Koja

ISBN: 978-014240-209-2

2003 Farrar Straus and Giroux, New York, NY

Plot Summary:

One day in the lunch room a strange new boy approaches each table, begging. Justin makes the social mistake of interacting with him and his fate is sealed because Buddha boy has attracted the attention of the bully, McManus.

After the lunchroom incident, Justin gets paired with Buddha Boy for a school project and they become better acquainted. Justin learns that the boy goes by the name Jinsen, which was given to him by his Buddhism teacher. Justin also learns that Jinsen is a gifted artist.

At school, McManus continues to unmercifully torture Jinsen. McManus vandalizes Jinsen’s art, but suffers no consequence because no one can prove it was him.

Jinsen shares with Justin that he has adopted a non-violent lifestyle because anger and violence were destroying his life. He is an orphan and in the care of his great aunt and he knows that he has to maintain this non-violent lifestyle for her.

When McManus once again vandalizes some of Jinsen’s hard work, Justin snaps and stands up for Jinsen. In the end Jinsen’s talent is recognized and Justin and Jinsen have a solid friendship.

Critical Evaluation:

This novel covers themes of bullying and religion.

In the theme of bullying, McManus rules the school. Justin and his friends do everything they can to avoid McManus’s attention, but he has the power. He is large, he is popular, and he is recognized as a superior student. Justin cannot compete with that. He chooses to avoid attention because any attention he would get from McManus would be bullying. The imbalance in power is fundamental to the bullying relationship.

The theme of religion comes directly from Jinsen, the titular character. Justin is not particularly religious, but Jinsen practices Buddhism. In his practice he has learned to deny himself extravagance. He is stripped down in his religious piety. Jinsen has also accomplished a life of non-violence, which he shared that he could not achieve before he became Buddhist.

These two themes shape the story. The bully would not get his payback if Justin had not had to learn to speak up for Jinsen. Jinsen would not have received his reward of art school if he had not observed his Buddhist beliefs. Staying peaceful gave Jinsen a chance, while lashing out gave Justin his voice.

Reader’s Annotation:

Justin wishes Jinsen would stop being so weird and keep his head down. Buddha Boy knows who he is, though.

Author Information:

My biography doesn't take very long to tell. I was born in Detroit, second of two sisters, and grew up in an east-side suburb. I've been writing since I was a very young girl -- it's not just what I do, it's who I am, the way I see the world, and the way I try to make sense of what I see. Read more here.

Genre(s): 

Realistic Fiction

Curriculum Ties: Bullying

Booktalk Ideas: This connects to themes for booktalks on bullying and religion themes.

Reading level: Grade 6+

Interest age: 12+

Challenge Issues: Challenge Defense File

Why I chose this book:

This book was recommended for teens and young adults from audiobooksync.com