The Wednesday Wars by Gary D Schmidt is a Newbery Honor Book for 2010. And for good reason.
We follow a seventh-grade boy named Holling Hoodhood in 1967 during the Vietnam War on Long Island. He is the only Presbyterian in his class so he has to stay at school on Wednesdays while the rest of his class leave early for Catholic school or Jewish school. His teacher, Mrs. Baker, is resentful. She makes Holling clean the chalkboard and clean out the coat closet. He thinks his teacher is out to get him.
She assigns him extra work as well which include reading the great plays of William Shakespeare. This leads to him performing in the Christmas performance of The Tempest. He begins to memorize whole passages of Shakespeare and learn lessons from the plays as well. His father is overbearing and is very self-absorbed with making sure his architecture business grows and succeeds. He is also convinced Holling will succeed him in the future.
This book is laugh-out-loud funny as Holling deals with his Tempest costume of yellow tights and white feathers on his butt. He deals with a bully and pet rats he accidentally let loose in the school. He learns it’s more about giving than spending money on a date. Mrs. Baker takes him on a field trip to study architecture and Holling sees buildings and the history they hold for the first time.
There is a very moving scene in the book where Holling rescues his older sister who ran off with her boyfriend and realizes it’s a mistake. “The first time that you know you really care about something is when you think about it not being there, and…the emptiness is as much inside you as outside you.” We get to see Holling grow in maturity and into his own as he realizes how much he loves his family and friends around him and realizes there’s more to life than architecture.
I cannot recommend this book enough. Historically accurate and entertaining I haven’t read this good of a book in a long time. I read it outloud to all of my kids and they all loved it!
“Sometimes the real world is like Hamlet. A little scared. Unsure. A little angry. Wishing you could fix something you can’t.”
Hello My BSF Friend. My computer crashed and I cannot get the BSF posts from you for The following days. October 2, 3, 4, 5 & 6? I so enjoy reading all that you send concerning the passage we are studying. I have a new computer but it is not installed. So could you possibly resend on Monday? Thank you so much for your faithfulness in sending your notes. LOVE IN JESUS, Evelyn
Sent from my iPhone
Evelyn,
There’s an easier way! Just visit my homepage at http://www.atozmomm.com and scroll down or click on the side bar labeled “BSF Romans” and all the lessons will come up forever and always!
Thanks and have a wonderful weekend!
This book was definitely a great read. I’m a retired school teacher and a grandma with a 10 year old grandson so I could identify with both characters. Laugh out loud funny in some parts. Thanks for a great recommendation. Will look for more books by this author.