BUDDHA BOY Hardcover, 128 Pages Farrar Straus & Giroux March 2003 ISBN 0374309981

Praise for Buddha Boy 2004 International Reading Association's Children's Book Awards - YA fiction 2004 Chicago Public Library Best of the Best List 2004 Books for the Teen Age 2004 List, sponsored by the New York Public Library Koja accomplishes quite a feat...A compelling introduction to Buddhism and a credible portrait of how true friendship brings out the best in people. -- Publishers Weekly [starred review] Koja flawlessly walks a tightrope...Quickly paced, inviting, and eye-opening, this is a marvelous addition to YA literature. -- School Library Journal [W]hat makes it distinct are its philosophical underpinnings, its subtle characterizations of outsider Jinsen and conventional-kid Justin, and a stream-of-consciousness prose style thatgives the novel an original, offbeat voice. -- The Horn Book I want every young person to read this book. It is a potent remedy for the teasing and bullying so rampant in today's schools. -- Chinaberry Awards / Honors 2007 YALSA Popular Paperback A YALSA 2006 Selection, Audiobooks for Young Adults Nominated for the 2006 Garden State Teen Book Award Tayshas Reading List choice 2005-2006 2005 Audie Award for Drama A BOOK SENSE 76 Top Ten Spring Teen Reads pick An Amazon.com 2003 Top Ten Editors' Pick for Teens Selected as one of Booklist's Top Ten Religious Books for Youth Buddha Boy won the Children's Book Award (Fiction/Young Adult) from the International Reading Association. The award was presented at a luncheon during the IRA annual convention, in Reno. Buddha Boy won the 2003 Society of Midland Authors Children's Fiction Award. Excerpt from Buddha Boy     " What is that ?" from Megan in her usual drama-queen way: but it was a sight, really, this skinny bald-headed kid in a size million t-shirt, backpack humped and lumpy as a turtle's shell, making his way across the cafeteria like he'd never been in one before, like a rabbit crossing the freeway: this way, that way, looking all around. "An exchange student? From Mars ?"     "No, they only come in the fall," said Jakob, taking one of my fries. "Like last year, that one girl from, where was she from? Latvia? Estonia?"     "You mean the one with the braids ," Megan said, mock-shuddering. "Once in gym class, she was doing these back-flips, and her braids got caught on the -- Justin, what are you staring at?"     "I'm trying to figure out what he's doing," because I was, because it didn't make any sense: going from table to table, asking for something? but wherever he went people stared at him, laughed at him, one of McManus' crew threw something at him, a pencil? a straw? and the whole table howled when he stooped to pick it up and bring it back. For a second I wondered if he was a Special Needs kid, but Special Needs don't have the same lunch hour that we do, and anyway almost nobody picks on them.     Then as he got closer and I got a look at his face I saw that he wasn't Special Needs at all, he looked perfectly normal, except that he was smiling. Not a nervous smile, or that tight bottled-up grin you get when you're really humiliated and trying not to show it: no, it was a real sunny regular all's-right-with-the-world smile, which meant that he was either high, or crazy. Or --     -- closer now, coming right up to our table, big ears and tilted, sleepy eyes, not bald but shaved, you could see the blond stubble poking up on his scalp. But you could tell he wasn't a skinhead, or anything sick like that, just -- just strange , the way a platypus is strange, or one of those deep-sea plants, waving waxy fingers on the ocean floor as "Excuse me," he said to us, very politely. "Can I have some change, please?" "What ?" said Megan in spite of herself, then looked away, mortified that she'd said anything at all, that she'd even acknowledged this kid standing there with his hand out, even the biggest moochers didn't go about it as blatantly as this but     "What's the matter?" I asked him. "Forget your lunch money or something?"     His smile went wider still; for a second I thought of Humpty Dumpty, that bald head smiling all around itself as "Oh no," he said. "I'm a monk. Monks beg."     "You're a what?" but Megan gave me a glare you could have used to cut metal, don't talk to the weirdo because people were staring at us now, staring and snickering and "Here," I said, digging in my pocket, handing him a dollar and "Thanks," he said, and made a funny little gesture with his hand, then moved off to the next table where one of the basketball jocks was waiting with a can of Mountain Dew, he must have shaken it up first because as soon as the bald kid put out his hand Jocko sprayed him, wet spurt all over his shirt, big laughs but not from me because I didn't think it was funny, all Jocko had to do was say no and "What an asshole," I said but "Exactly," Megan nodded, folding her arms. " Everyone was looking. Don't do it again."