THE WEDNESDAY WARS

Schmidt, Gary D. 2007. THE WEDNESDAY WARS. New York: Clarion Books, 2007.

There are three things readers need to know about Holling Hoodhood, the protagonist of WEDNESDAY WARS: first, he’s the only Presbyterian in his seventh grade class; second, because of this he is the only one left behind while his Catholic and Jewish classmates attend religious instruction on Wednesday afternoons; and third, the teacher he’s left behind with hates his guts. At least, that’s the way it seems to Holling. These three small facts are what set the events of the novel in motion.

I was pleasantly surprised by THE WEDNESDAY WARS. I was fearful that because the protagonist was a young male, that I would be unable to connect with him as a character. After reading the first few pages, however, my fears were completely set aside because I realized this novel was written in such a way that made Holling likeable and relatable. The book is short, less than three hundred pages, and though the main character is in seventh grade, I would feel comfortable recommending it to fourth grade readers and up.

WEDNESDAY WARS refers to his weekly “battles” with his teacher, Mrs. Baker, whom he is certain took a disliking to him since the first day of school when she realized he would be the only one in class on Wednesday afternoons, when she could be having an otherwise free hour. However, though Holling isn’t involved in an actual “war”, the novel is set during the time period of the Vietnam War, making this a work of historical fiction, and it does have an impact on several characters, Mrs. Baker included.

I found WEDNESDAY WARS to be entertaining, and loved experiencing life through Holling’s eyes because of his amusing and sometimes thoughtful inner dialogue. I was also intrigued because though I was certain Mrs. Baker didn’t actually HATE Holling, there did seem to be something going on, and I wanted to find out what it was. This novel won a Newbery Honor medal in 2008 for reasons best summed up in this quote from a starred review in Booklist: “Holling's unwavering, distinctive voice offers a gentle, hopeful, moving story of a boy who, with the right help, learns to stretch beyond the limitations of his family, his violent times, and his fear, as he leaps into his future with his eyes and his heart wide open” (Engberg).

Reference List:

Engberg, Gillian. 2007. Review of The Wednesday Wars, by Gary D. Schmidt. Booklist.