The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt

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The Wednesday Wars

Bibliography

Schmidt, Gary D. The Wednesday Wars. New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009. Print. ISBN 0618724834

Plot Summary

Holling Hoodhood home is located right in the middle of town not to the south and not to the north, but in the perfect house his father an architect had chosen and fixed. He attends Camillo Junior High and must be on his best behavior if he wants his father’s company to acquire a foreseen architectural job. Though Holling is convinced that Mrs. Baker hates him for he is the only one left on Wednesdays when all his classmates go to Hebrew school or Catechism. Mrs. Baker makes Holling do classroom chores while his classmates are getting religious instruction, but he comes across a few mishaps along the way. Mrs. Baker later takes a different approach by making Holling read Shakespeare. Holling makes the best of it embracing what comes his way. Whether it be cream puffs full of chalk, rats escaping, yellow tights, or lost baseball heroes Holling finds a way to push through with friends, family, and even Mrs. Baker by his side.

Critical Analysis

This is a witty story by Gary D. Schmidt of a teen Holling Hoodhood and his many adventures throughout a course of a year. Schmidt incorporates factual events through the Vietnam War. Schmidt does a wonderful job in including various characters that experienced different situations as a result of this time period. Mrs. Baker is also another important character and the reader can see the troubles that she goes through for her husband is of fighting in the war. On the other hand, Holling’s sister, Heather is taking another approach to the war and runs away to California to adopt the hippie free spirited ideas. While with Holling’s father one can see a parent can place so much pressure on a child without even noticing. There is even a mention of Martin Luther King’s incident. Schmidt incorporates humor through the mishaps and adventure of its main character. Holling also experiences prejudice for dressing up like a Shakespeare character for a play. This story encompasses many feelings and situations that adults and children experienced based on the time in history they lived in.

Review Excerpts

  • Review in GOODREADS: “The Wednesday Wars is a wonderfully witty and compelling story about a teenage boy’s mishaps and adventures over the course of the 1967–68 school year in Long Island, New York.”
  • Review in HORNBOOKS: “Schmidt rises above the novel’s conventions to create memorable and believable characters.”
  • Newbery Honor (2008)
  • Rebecca Caudill Young Reader's Book Award Nominee (2010)
  • Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children's Book Award Nominee (2009)
  • Judy Lopez Memorial Award for Children's Literature (2008)
  • Society of Midland Authors Award for Children's Fiction (2008)


Connections

This great book to touch on issues such as racism, war, civil rights movement, or just for leisure reading. This book can be used in different class assignments such as addressing how the Vietnam War affected each of the characters or creating a timeline for a history class. Other books similar to this:
Chbosky, Stephen. The Perks of Being a Wallflower. ISBN 0671027344
Paterson, Katherine. Bridge to Terabithia. ISBN 0439366771


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