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Saturday, September 4, 2010
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Kids' Book Picks

The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt

Middle School is tough enough, especially when you think your teacher hates your guts.

 
   Have you ever lived during a time of war? In Gary D. Shmidt’s novel, Wednesday Wars, a boy named Holling Hoodhood is having trouble at school and it is really hard because the Vietnam War is going on. The real challenge is when Holling’s father wants him to take over the family business, but Holling refuses to. The climax or biggest hill in this story is when Holling chooses his own career. That creates an argument in the family.
Besides Holling there were several other great characters. Mrs. Baker is my favorite. He’s the teacher for Holling and helps him decide what he wants his future career to be. I also like Meryl Lee, his “special” friend who was an important key to this novel.
   Students at Portola would find the story boring because there is no true action in this story and that it is extremely slow. Kids can relate to this novel from their experience of school, if it was either bad or good.
   The most interesting part of the story was when Holling dressed up in pink and danced like a fairy. I thought that it was very funny. I wouldn’t recommend this book because it’s very slow and bad.
Reviewed by Nicholas M.
 
 
   Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a story about not judging a book by its cover. The main character is Holling Hoodhood, a boy who tries to make the best of a new school and a new life as a middle schooler. It takes place in 1967 during a time of the Vietnam War. The conflict centers around Holling not liking his teacher and her “hating” him. The story gets complicated spending Wednesdays with Mrs. Baker and doing a whole bunch of chores for her. It takes another interesting turn when Holling accidentally puts chalk in the cream puffs. The climax of the story is when Hoodhood and associates are linked with baker industries.
   In addition to Holling Hoodhood there were several other great characters. Mrs. Baker, the teacher who served a role as a teacher.
   The most interesting part of the story was Holling assuming Mrs. Baker hates him. It surprised me because she actually helped him. I don’t recommend this book because it is full of complete nonsense.
Reviewed by Austin S.
 
 
   The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt, is a book about a boy named Holling Hoodhood. Every Wednesday he must sit in a classroom with his teacher and read Shakespeare. At first he doesn’t like it, but then things take a big turn. It takes place in a town in New York. The year is 1967. The conflict surrounds Wednesday afternoons and the Vietnam War. The story becomes problematic when everyone in his class is against him. It takes another interesting turn when Mrs. Baker suddenly is on Holling’s side and soon everyone starts to like him. The climax is when Holling goes to a Yankee game with Mrs. Baker (which makes her and him get along better) and he meets some famous baseball players after the game.
   Other than Holling Hoodhood, there were other main/important characters. Meryl Lee, his friend/later on girlfriend, played a huge role in the story because Hoodhood and Associates had a competitor when they needed an architect to build the new school. Kowalski and Associates were Meryl Lee’s family.
   Students in Portola, in fact students anywhere, would enjoy this book because Holling Hoodhood and his friends are seventh graders. We can really relate to the book because we can really understand what is going on, like not liking a particular teacher.
In my opinion, the most interesting part of the story, was when Holling and Mrs. Baker were doing all the Shakespeare. In my mind, it was almost like a montage of the whole thing in my head. I was surprised that in the rest of the book, Holling uses the phrases from the Shakespearean plays. I would definitely recommend this book because I just couldn’t put it down. It just doesn’t stop going and that is what makes a truly good book.
Reviewed by Lily L.
 
 
   Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a story about a young boy in middle school. The main character is Holling Hood, a boy that thinks that everybody is against him. It takes place in Rhode Island close to the War that took place. The conflict centers on Holling. The story gets complicated when Holling reliezes that Mrs.Baker, his techer,dislikes him. It takes another interesting turn when he is a fairy in the Shakespeare play that they act out. The climax is when Holling earned cream puffs after the play he did dressed as a fairy which was embarassing for hijm to do.
In addition, other than Holling their was Mrs.Baker the teacher who disliked Holling and tourched him. There was also Meryl Lee, Hollings girlfriend, and Doug Swieteck, Hollings best buddy.
   Students at Portola would find the story interesting because they could relate to the events that occured with Holling and find parts of the story humorous as well to them. It well also keep you awake and they would't want to put the book down just to keep reading.
   The most interesting part was when Holling performed as the fairy because he did good enough to get surprising thoughts that were saying he did good. I recommend this book because if it kept me awake then most likely it well keep others as well.
Reviewed by Saman N.
 
 
   The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a book about Holling Hoodhood, a 13 year-old boy who is living in Long Island, New York, around the late 60’s. Holling is a seventh grader at Camillo Junior High School. Everyone at the school is Jewish or Catholic, but Holling is neither. This matters because every Wednesday, the students go to Hebrew school or Catechism, which means that he has to stay with his English teacher, Mrs. Baker. The conflict starts when Holling starts to believe that Mrs. Baker hates him because she gives Holling what he thinks is harder work. An interesting turn in the plot of the story is when Mrs. Baker introduces Holling to Shakespeare. The major climactic moment was easily, when Lieutenant Baker, Mrs. Baker's husband, came back alive from Vietnam.
   Holling Hoodhood isn't the only interesting character in the novel, though. Meryl Lee was also a really good friend to Holling, as was Mrs. Baker, towards the end of the story. Mrs. Hoodhood served a very motherly role in the story, and Danny Hupfer was indeed a good friend to Holling.
   Students would find this book interesting because the main character is about the same age as us middle-schoolers, so we can relate to why he makes some of his choices or performs certain actions.
Reviewed by Robbie B. III
 
 
   Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a story about Shakespeare, Wednesdays, the Vietnam War, and yellow tights with white feathers on the rear end. The main character is Holling Hoodhood, a boy who is supposed to inherit the Hoodhood and associates architecture company. It takes place during 1967 and 1968 on Long Island during the Vietnam War. There are a lot of people fighting about if the war is fair or not. Truthfully there is no set climax point.
   In addition to Holling, there are other great characters too. Meryl Lee is Holling’s “girlfriend.” Danny is his best friend. Finally is Mrs. Baker, Holling’s teacher who—quite frankly—is out to get him because she “hates his guts!”
   Students at Portola would not find this book interesting because all of the chapters could be their own book. Still, hey might be able to relate to some of the issues that Holling goes through.
   The most interesting part of the story is at the end when Mrs. Baker’s ….you know, if you read the book you find out because I hate to ruin an ending to any book.
Reviewed by Austin W.
 
 
   Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a story about a boy living in the 1960s.The main character is Holling Hood, a boy who is absolutely sure the world is against him. It takes place in Rhode Island during a time close to war. The conflict centers on the everyday trials of seventh grade. The story gets complicated when Holling is certain his seventh grade teacher Ms. Baker hates him because she makes him read Shakespeare. It takes another interesting turn when a he is forced to buy the class another batch of expensive cream puffs because the original one had disappeared. The climax is when, to get the cream puffs, Holling has to perform a Shakespeare play in embarrassing attire in front of all his classmates.
   In addition to Holling there were several other great characters. Ms. Baker, the teacher, who served a role as the woman who pushes Holling to his full potential.
   Students at Portola would find the story interesting because it has a lot of parts that they would find funny and thrilling. They could also relate to how Holling thinks his teacher hates him because we all were faced with a situation like this before.
   The most interesting part of the story was when Holling performed on stage. It surprised me because it was unexpected that he would receive such good feedback from kids that are usually so mean. I recommend this book because I feel like my friends would relate to it very well.
Reviewed by Nicole S.
 
 
   The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a story about a boy who is trying to get into honors classes. The main character is Holling Hoodhood, a boy who as average as everyone in his school. It takes place in Long Island, NY during a time of a lot of business. The conflict centers around Holling. The story gets complicated when Holling’s father wants him to take over the family business. It takes another interesting turn when Holling refuses to. The climax ends up with Holling choosing what career he wants.
   In addition to Holling there were several other great characters. Mrs. Baker, the teacher who served a role as a mentor for Holling, who helps him find out what he wants to do for the rest of his life.
Students at Portola would find the story boring because there is not much that happens in the story. They could also relate to a regular day at school and also at home.
   The most interesting part of the story was when Holling became smart. It surprised me because I thought he was stupid. I don’t recommend this book because it’s boring and stupid.
Reviewed by Alex M.
 
 
   Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a story about a boy in a feud with his teacher. The main character is Holling Hoodhood, a boy who doesn’t go home early Wednesdays since he is Protestant. It takes place in Long Island during the Vietnam War. The conflict centers around the time when Holling is starting Seventh Grade. The story gets complicated when Sycorax and Caliban the rats escape. It takes another interesting turn when Holling is trying out for Cross-Country running. The climax is not pinpointed able since there are so many.
   Students at Portola would find the story interesting because there are a lot of funny scenes. They could also relate to Hollings life. The most interesting part of the story was when Mr. Baker turned up alive. It surprised me because the TV said there were no survivors from his crash. I recommend this book because there were many great things and a fantastic plot
Reviewed by Nick B.
 
 
   Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a story about a 7th grader named
Holling Hoodhood who is having trouble in his middle school. Everyone at Camillo Junior High is either Jewish or Catholic. Holling is neither, so he is stuck with a teacher named Mrs. Baker on Wednesdays while the Jewish children go to Hebrew school and Catholic children study catholic traditions. The main character is Holling Hoodhood, a seventh grader who spends his time with Mrs. Baker Wednesday afternoons. It takes place in Long Island, New York at Camillo Junior High during the time of Holling Hoodhood’s seventh grade year every after school from 1:45 till the end of school. The conflict centers around Holling when he is caught with Mrs. Baker after school on Wednesdays. He does activities like cleaning erasers. The coatroom and more. One miserable Wednesday afternoon, Mrs. Baker asks him to move trays of cream puffs the cafeteria manager has made at school. After, he needs to clean some more erasers. The story gets fairly complicated when Mrs. Baker gives almost impossible quizzes in English class, and many more challenging assignments. To top it all off, he has to diagram very complex sentences! UGH! The climax is when Mrs. Baker orders Holling to read the beautiful, but very complex William Shakespeare. To a seventh grade boy, Mrs. Baker has gone extremely far. Do you think that was pretty bad? He also has to do a play, sponsored by a local bakery. He even has to wear yellow tights with feathers!!
   In addition to Holling Hoodhood, there were many other great characters such as Heather Hoodhood, Holling’s sister, and the notorious Mrs. Baker.
   Students at Portola Middle School would find this story fairly interesting because everyone knows they have at least one teacher that the chemistry doesn’t flow between them. We are also in seventh grade, so there is another similarity. The most exciting, interesting part in this book in my opinion was when Holling was to do the Shakespeare play. Your imagination expands so much, and the thought of yellow tights and feathers just made it even bigger. I actually would not recommend this book to others, just because it is not the book for me, and it is slow. Other than that, I think others will like it very much. 
Reviewed by Rochell R.
 
 
   Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a story about a boy named Holling who is very different from the kids at his school and has to find his real self and who he actually is. The main character is Holling Hoodhood, a boy who goes to a school where there are two groups and he doesn't fit into either of them. It takes place in Camillo Junior High on Long Island, in New York and sometimes in Mrs. Baker's room on Wednesday afternoon from 1:45 p.m. until the end of school during a time of the Vietnam War and the Civil Rights Moment. The conflict centers around the time when Holling realizes who he is and what he is there for. The story gets complicated when Holling has to do a lot of work for Mrs. Baker. It takes another interesting turn when Holling and Mrs. Baker start reading Shakespeare. The climax when Holling realizes where he is from and what is actually happening in the world.
   Students at Portola would find the story interesting because it is a story about Junior High which they are in. They could also relate to their lives and the life of Holling Hoodhood. The most interesting part of the story was when Holling started reading Shakespeare and he started enjoying his life. It surprised me because I thought that he was going to think that Mrs. Baker was going to hate him for his whole life, but she didn't. I recommend this book because it is a fun an interesting story that many young adults would like very much.
Reviewed by Noa V.
 
 
   The Wednesday Wars, by Gary D. Schmidt, is a story about a seventh grade boy, Holling Hoodhood, who is convinced his teacher, Mrs. Baker, hates him. It takes place in 1967 during the Vietnam war. The conflict centers around the fact that Holling has to try to be as good a student as he can for Mrs. Baker because his dad’s business depends on it. The story takes an interesting turn when Holling has been cast in a Shakespeare play and he plays the role of Ariel the fairy, and pictures of him in his costume tights quickly migrate around the school. The climax occurs when Holling makes the track team, and the seventh grade is depending on him to win the school tournament.
   In addition to Holling, there were a few other important characters. Mrs. Baker, his teacher, always tried to get him into as much trouble as possible. The main reason is because he is the only one who stays with her in class whenever the rest go to church. Either that or she hates Presbytarians. She would often give him 150-question tests that would take him half the day to do. Doug Swietek and his brother were bullies to Holling and were one of Mrs. Baker’s favorite students, mostly because of that. Meryl Lee was a girl who had liked Holling since third grade, and he soon enough decides he likes her back.
   Students at Portola would find the story interesting because it takes place in the past and the newspapers and famous people around are all totally different than who is around today, and what about them. They could relate to what life would have been like back then.
   My favorite part of the story was when Holling is cast into the play, which was surprising because he thinks, at first, that that is the first good thing to happen to him during the year. I do not recommend this book because none of the characters were very interesting and the climax was not one with much excitement, and it took quite a while to read, in my opinion.
Reviewed by Andy W.
 
   Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is about a 7th grader who needs to spend Wednesday afternoons with his teacher who “hates his guts” because he does not attend Hebrew School or Catechism, because he is Presbyterian. The main character is Holling Hoodhood who again, needs to face his teacher. The story takes place in the late 1960’s during the Vietnam War. The conflict centers around the basic, everyday, events of Holling's life, which are not ordinary events. The story gets complicated when Holling’s fathers’ business is incorporated is the story. Hoodhood and Associates is what makes the world go round according to Holling’s father. The climax is when Holling’s sister goes to California to “find herself.”
   More of the main characters include Mrs. Bakers, Holling’s teacher. Heather, Holling’s sister. Danny, Meryl Lee, and Mai Thi, Holling’s friends that are crucial to the story. Holling’s father, and Mr. Goldman, the baker who casts Holling as Ariel the fair in his production of The Tempest.
   I think that Portola would find this story interesting because it has events that are not action-packed, but interesting, also a little funny. Portola seventh graders could definitely relate to all the sentence diagramming. It is so right. We never stop diagramming sentences.
   The most interesting part of the book is when Holling saves his sister from being hit by a car. Holling was frowned upon during that part of the book, and that made that go away. It was interesting because the moment was so suspenseful. I personally recommend this book because, though it doesn’t have a clear climax, the message is clear and we all can learn from that.
Reviewed by Lindsey T.
 
 
   The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a story about a boy who thinks that his teacher hates him. The main character is Holling Hoodhood, a boy who
is in seventh grade . It takes place in 1967 during the Vietnam War. The conflict centers around when Holling has to stay in class alone with Mrs. Baker, the teacher, on Wednesdays because he is a presbytarian. The story gets complicated when he is in a play where he plays the role of a fairy, and everyone in his class watches him. His costume is yellow with feathers on his butt. It takes another interesting turn when his sister runs away.The climax is when Holling and his teacher start to get along.
In addition to Holling, there were several other great characters. Mrs. Baker, as mentioned before, is the teacher of Holling who served a role as the person who changed his life.
   Students at Portola would find the story interesting because ridiculous things always happen to Holling. They could also relate to his life because everyone thinks that their teacher is there to torture them.
   The most interesting part of the story was when Holling actually starts to like Mrs. Baker. It surprised me because it was so unexpected. I recommend this book because you can relate to many of Holling’s situation.
Reviewed by Jae H.
 
   The Wednesday Wars by Gary Schmidt is a story about a seventh-grade boy who has many problems to deal with inside and outside of school. The main character is Holling Hoodhood, a seventh-grade boy who suspects that his teacher hates him. It takes place in 1967, when the Vietnam War is just about ending. The conflict starts when Holling has to stay with Mrs. Baker after class on Wednesdays to read Shakespeare, and they also start to connect the story to their problems. The story gets complicated when Holling has to play Ariel on the same night that Mickey Mantle is signing autographs.
   In addition to Holling, there were many other great characters. Meryl Lee, Mrs. Baker, Mai Thi, Doug, and Danny were also great characters that made the story more interesting.
   Students at Portola would find this story interesting for many reasons. The fact that it discusses how seventh grade may feel for some people can help readers at Portola to connect with the character.
   The most interesting part of the story for me was when Holling goes camping with the whole class. It was my favorite part because the whole class and the teachers were all having a good time together. I recommend this book for students who like stories about young adults that are in trouble. Overall, this was a good book.
Reviewed by Izabel I.
 
   The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a story about a boy who thought his teacher hated him. The main character is Holling Hoodhood, a boy who is in the seventh grade. It takes place in Long Island, New York,
during the late 1960s.
   The conflict centers Holling, a Presbyterian, attends a school that on Wednesdays half of the class goes to Hebrew School at 1:45 and the other half goes to Catechism at 1:55. He doesn’t have to go to either religious study so he’s stuck with Mrs. Baker at his school. The story gets complicated when Mrs. Baker starts giving him chores on Wednesday’s afterschool. It takes another interesting turn when Holling lets the rats out of their cage and Mr. Vendleri and Mr. Gurauschi try to catch them because you learn more about some of the characters and the rats become an important part of the story. The climax is at that point where Mrs. Baker starts assigning Holling Shakespeare plays to read because at that point he starts to bond with Mrs. Baker and he realizes that Mrs. Baker doesn’t hate him.
   In addition to Holling, there were several other great characters. Mrs. Baker, the woman who served a role as his seventh grade English teacher and became great friends with Holling. There was also Heather Hoodhood, Holling’s older sister, who was a flower child. There was Danny Hupher, Doug Swieteck, Meryl Lee Kowalski, and Mai Thi, who were Holling’s good friends. And last but not least, Mr. Hoodhood, Holling’s dad.
   Students at Portola would find the story interesting because a lot of students get stuck in a situation where they think their teacher hates them. They could also relate to having a dad that wants you to pass on the family job, being embarrassed, and big eighth graders who pick on you.
   The most interesting part of the story was when Holling saved his sister from a bus afterschool one day. It surprised me because I thought Holling was going to get hit with a bunch of snowballs not a bus. I recommend this book because I think it’s a great story, it has a lot of important lessons, it’s funny, and a lot of people can relate to it.
Reviewed by Amanda S.
 
   Wednesday Wars by Gary Schmidt is a story about a boy, Holling HoodHood in the seventh grade. The story takes place in 1697 during the Vietnam War. Besides his teacher hating him Holling has many problems of his own to take care of. For instance like the time he had to play the fairy with yellow tights and feathers on his butt, or when he accidently set the class rats out, or when his father started including them in the family business.
   Holling isn’t the only character that plays a main role, there is his teacher Mrs. Baker. Holling thinks that Mrs. Baker hates him. She doesn’t actually hate him, he just thinks that. They begin to develop a strong relationship throughout the story by reading Shakespeare and earning cream puffs.
   If I were to have to recommend this story to anybody it would be to a middle school student. Not only is it about one it had a lot of humor and interesting events. I would have to say my favorite part is when Holling has to play the fairy on the same night as Mickey Mantle is signing autographs. He was able to get in and talk to him, but Mantel completely blew him off and told him he was late. I enjoyed reading about how he made it through the seventh grade.
Reviewed by Carina T.
 
   Wednesday Wars by Gary Schmidt is a story about a kid that thinks his English teacher hates him all because he is Presbyterian. The main character is Holing Hoodhood, a boy who is very loyal, patient, smart, and he is a Presbyterian. It takes place in Long Island/ New York and Camillo Junior high school during a time when Vietnam was in war with American and in the 1960s(1967-1968).
   The conflict centers around Holing because he thinks his anti-Presbyterian teacher Ms.Baker is out to get her and he tries everything in his power to get on her good side.
The story gets complicated when Holing has to get on Ms.Bakers good side and all he had to do was do favors for her when she needed it. It takes another interesting turn when Holing saves his sisters life from danger and is published on the newspaper.
The climax is when Mrs. Baker makes Holing join a Shakespeare play and he is uncomfortable with his yellow tights with his feathers on his buttocks.
   In addition to (Holing) there were several other great characters. Doug Swieteck, Meryl lee, and Ms.Baker. Doug Swieteck who served a role as one of Hollings good friend, Meryl Lee who served a role as Hollings girlfriend, and Ms.Baker who played a role as one of Hollings teachers.
   Students at Portola would find the story interesting because this book is very funny and good. They could also relate to when they had a teacher that they think hated them for who they are.
   The most interesting part of the story was when Holing saved her sister from death. It surprised me because that was very brave of him to do. I recommend/ this book because this book is very good and its very funny at the same time.
Reviewed by Keon M.
 
 
   Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a book about a 7th grade boy with some trouble at school. The main character is Holling Hoodhood who is near thirteen years old. It takes place at Camillo Junior High School at 1967 when Vietnam and America were in a conflict. The conflict starts when Holling thinks his teacher Mrs. Baker hates him completely. He thinks this because she makes him do more things while the other students are gone. The story gets complicated when Holling’s sister runs away. It takes another turn when Mrs. Baker makes him learn about Shakespeare. He had to take quizzes and test on him, too. The climax is when he realizes he has to participate in a play.
   In addition to Holling Hoodhood, there were several other great characters. Heather Hoodhood, who is Holling’s sister, Mr. Hoodhood, who is Holling’s father, and Mrs. Baker, who is Holling’s teacher. Students at Portola would find this story interesting because it talks a lot about middle school. They can also relate to how it feels to have a mean teacher if they’ve ever had one before. The most interesting part of the story was when he found out he had to be in a play. It surprised me because I wouldn’t have been in it. He had to wear this ridiculous costume and I would be too embarrassed to go up on stage like that. I recommend this book to others because it may inspire others. If you are looking for a book with great comedy and perseverance, read this book.
Reviewed by Arya D.
 
   The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt was about a 12 to 13 year old boy in 7th grade that is a Presbyterian, and the only in his class when everyone else was either Catholic or Jewish. His Presbyterian teacher (only on Wednesdays) and regular teacher everyday, Mrs. Baker made it seem like to the main character Holling HoodHood that she hated his guts. It takes place in Long Island, New York in 1967 when the Vietnam War is going on.      
   The story gets complicated when Mrs. Baker gives Holling Shakespeare. It takes another interesting turn when Holling has to play Ariel in Mr. Goldman’s Shakespeare play, the character has to wear yellow tights and feathers coming out of his butt. The climax is when after the Shakespeare play Holling is racing to the Sports Emporium to get an autograph from his favorite baseball player.
   In addition to Holling HoodHood there were other great characters like Mrs. Baker, HoodHood family, Danny Hupher, Meryl Lee and many others. Kids in the 7th grade can relate and will enjoy this story because it’s all about 7th grade drama. I recommend this book because it has crazy situations and it is a fun read.
Reviewed by Jacob G.
 
   The Wednesday Wars, by Gary D. Schmidt is an intriguing story about a 7th grade boy named Holling Hoodhood that takes place in 1967, during the Vietnam War. Aside from the fact that there’s a war going on, try having a mean teacher hate your guts. At least that’s what he thinks. In this story, there are some sad parts, some funny parts, and some disappointing parts. For instance, I was disappointed when Mickey Mantle was mean to Holling instead of being nice and signing the baseball.
   Holling is not the only main character in this great book. Mrs. Baker, the “mean” teacher, holds Holling in on Wednesdays because he’s Presbyterian and doesn’t have anywhere to go. All of his classmates are either Jewish or Christian and have to go to church or temple. Throughout the story, Mrs. Baker and Holling slowly develop a strong relationship through a collection of William Shakespeare plays.
   If I had to recommend this story to anyone, I would do it to a friend of mine who thinks that his teacher hates him because he could probably relate to the story. I think my favorite part of the story was when Holling hurt Doug Swietech’s brother while playing soccer. The reason I enjoyed that part was because it was really surprising to me. I thought Doug’s brother was going to really injure Holling but instead it was the opposite. I really enjoyed this humorous 7th grade story.
Reviewed by Max L.
 
 
   The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a story about a boy who enters the seventh grade at his school. At school when getting called on role call he could tell that his teacher hates his guts or at least seemed like it. Going through the story he starts to realize that she doesn’t hate him and was a pretty nice teacher. The main character is a boy named Holling Hoodhood who is the kid that thinks his teacher hated him. It takes place in a town in New York during the year of 1967 during the Vietnam wars. The conflict centers on Holling trying to survive the 7th grade at Camillo Junior High with a very sturdy teacher. The story starts to get complicated for Holling when he has to start staying on Wednesdays with Mrs. Baker (his teacher) after school. It takes another interesting turn towards the end of the book when Mrs. Baker starts getting nicer and nicer to Holling until eventually they are very close. The climax of the story is at the end when Mr. Baker comes back home after thought being killed and everyone was happy even Holling and Mrs. Baker. They were closer than ever.
In addition to Holling Hoodhood there were several other great characters like Meryl Lee and Danny Hupfer But the greatest was Mrs. Baker who played the role of his teacher. She was such a great teacher because he educated him very nicely and she with Holling had lots of fun together.
   Students at Portola would find this story interesting because it is funny most of the book and who doesn’t like to laugh once in a while. They could also relate this book to Diary of a Wimpy Kid because it focuses on a middle schooler trying to work his way to the next grade up.
   The most interesting part of the story was when Holling sent all his money to his sister to get back home after leaving for California. It took me by surprise because for most of the book she had always been so mean to him and for him to do that was really mature. I recommend this book because I had a really good time reading it and the title really got my attention also.
Reviewed by Daniel M.
 
 
   Wednesday Wars by Gary Schmidt is about a seventh grade boy named Holling Hoodhood. This story takes place in the time of war in Vietnam. Holling is Presbyterian and is convinced that his teacher hates him because of his beliefs. The whole story is about the relationship between Holling and his teacher, Mrs. Baker. Holling’s dad makes him stay with Mrs. Baker no matter what she does because Mrs. Baker’s family owns a sport business and they are willing to use the Hoodhood and Associates as their architecture company. It gets complicated when Mrs. Baker makes Holling do a different chore then what he normally does: Shakespeare. Through Shakespeare, Holling and Mrs. Baker build a strong friendship.
Another great character next to Holling Hoodhood is Mrs. Baker playing Holling’s teacher and later on, friend.
   I would recommend this book to a Portola student because the book is interesting, funny, and has moments in which some students can relate to. For me, the most interesting part of the book is when Holling played the fairy the same night Mickey Mantel is signing autographs. It is my favorite part because it has an interesting twist to it. I enjoyed reading on how Holling Hoodhood made it through the seventh grade.
Reviewed by Andrew L.
 
 
   The Wednesday Wars is a story about how a boy in 7th grade thinks his teacher is trying to get him in trouble. The main character is Holling Hoodhood, a boy who pretty much stands out compared to everyone else since he is in one of the only families that have a certain religion. It takes place in New York during the year 1967. The conflict centers around Holling when he thinks his teacher is trying to get him because she makes him do gross, boring, and embarrassing things. The story gets complicated when Holling has to start reading plays from Shakespeare. It takes another interesting turn when Holling is pretty much in a competition between his father’s architecture company against one of his best friend’s father’s architecture company. The climax is when Holling accidently lets two pet rats of their cages and he always has to watch his back since the rats are scary and will bite you. In addition to Holling Hoodhood, there were several other great characters. Danny, one of Holling’s best friends, Meryl Lee, another one of Holling’s best friends, and Mai Thi, Holling’s 3rd best friend.     
   Students at Portola would find the story interesting because this book is about a kid around everyone’s age at Portola. Also because even though the same things wouldn’t really happen to you, it is a fun, exciting book about how one kid can have so many strange events happen to him in just one year, no matter how good or how bad the events are. The most interesting part of the book was when Holling got to meet some players on the New York Yankees and he gets to practice baseball with them. It surprised me because he took the opportunity of being able to meet major league baseball players and practiced with them. I mean how often do you get an opportunity to practice baseball with actual Major League players? The answer is almost never. I definitely recommend this book because it has a great story on how a kid thinks a teacher hates him but later finds out that his teacher has many interesting things about her past which actually leads him to having a great adventure in the 7th grade.
Reviewed by Matthew G.
 
   The book, Wednesday Wars, by Gary D. Schmidt is about a 7th grader named Holling Hoodhood. He attends Camillo Junior High School and when he finds out his teacher is out to get him, he freaks out. He wants to leave school or change classes, but his teacher might hire Holling's dad's architecture company to remodel a sport emporium for Mrs. Baker. Because he doesn't go to Bar or Bat Mitzvah lessons or Church tutoring on Wednesday afternoons, he is stuck alone with Mrs. Baker. She decides to teach him Shakespeare's plays. She makes him read them and then write about them. He likes Shakespeare so much that he decides to ask Mr. Goldenberg to be in his Christmas Shakespeare plays.
   One afternoon when all the kids went to their lessons, Mrs. Baker made Holling clean out the two rats' cage. They named the rats Sycorax and Caliban from one of Shakespeare's plays. When he was transferring the rats into a different area, the rats got loose and went into the ceiling. They stayed up there for such a long time that the ceiling started to bulge to the point where people were scared to sit underneath them.
Some other important characters were Mr. Goldenberg, the baker and leader of the Shakespeare plays, Mrs. Baker, Holling's teacher and at the end of the story his friend. Also, Holliing's dad was important because his business was keeping the story together by making Holling stand up with Mrs. Baker.
   I think Portola students would like it because it is filled with cliffhangers and you will never want to put it down. Also, it is funny at points in the story and it has a very good plot. The book seems like a twelve-year old wrote it because teenagers our age can definitely relate to it. I highly recommend this book for young teenagers.
Reviewed by Ben H.
 
   Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is about a kid named Holling Hoodhood. He thinks his teacher Mrs. Baker is out to get him. This book takes place in the 70's in New York. Hollings conflict was that he thought his teacher was out to get him because she made him read Shakespeare and help clean up the classroom. The story gets difficult for him as the year progresses and he is faced with many challenges. The book has lots of twists and turns that usually lead to the worst for him. There are others in this story like Doug Swieteck, Mrs. Sidman, Dad, Mom, Meryl Lee, his sister, and more.
   People would like this book beause it has comedy, a little romance, and is a fun fast pace not that long of a book. I really hadn't had a teacher that I thought hated my guts so I can't relate to that part of the story, but I have some hardships like Hollings. One of the best parts of this book is the part were he gets to play baseball with some major league players. I recommend this book if you want a book that will make you smile.
Reviewed by Tyler C.
 
   Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a story about a 7th grade boy that thinks his teacher is out to get him. The main character is a boy named Holling Hoodhood. It takes place during the time of the Vietnam War. The conflict of the story centers on Holling and his teacher who acts like she doesn’t like Holling very much. The story gets complicated when the two first start spending time together. Holling cleans the classroom and accidentally lets out their two class pets that are rats. It takes another interesting turn when the two find that they have something in common. They both love Shakespeare. The climax of the story happens when Holling and his teacher finally start to get along.
   In addition to Holling Hoodhood there were many other great characters in this book like Mrs. Baker. Mrs. Baker is of course Holling’s teacher. Her husband is in Vietnam fighting in the war. She does as many things as she possibly can to help the women that are much like her and have husbands fighting on that have died in the war. She also doesn’t seem to like Holling very much but after she assigns him Shakespeare’s, The Tempest, she sees his interest in the story and grows to be more and more fond of the boy.
   Students at Portola would find this story interesting because the situation in this book can be the same as the situations that students have been put into. They could also relate to this because maybe they once had a teacher that they felt only disliked them and only pushed them to the limit to do their best.
   The most interesting part of the story was when Holling was reading The Tempest and started to recite lines from the book. It surprised me because I could never imagine a 7th grades understanding and enjoying Shakespeare so much. I recommend this book to students because they may find Holling’s situation very easy to relate to.
Reviewed by Eliza B.
 
   The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a novel about Holling Hoodhood, a 13 year-old boy who is living in Long Island, New York, at around 1967. Holling, who is a seventh grader at Camillo Junior High School. Everybody at the school but him are either Jewish or Catholic, and this matters because every Wednesday, the students go to either Hebrew school or catechism; which means that he has to stay with his English teacher, Mrs. Baker. I believe that the conflict starts when Holling is starting to believe that Mrs. Baker hates him because she gives Holling what he thinks is harder work. An interesting turn in the plot of the story is when Mrs. Baker introduces Holling to Shakespeare. The major climactic moment for me was when Lieutenant Baker, Mrs. Baker's husband, came back alive from Vietnam.
   Holling Hoodhood isn't the only interesting character in the novel, though. Meryl Lee was also a really good friend to Holling, as was Mrs. Baker, near the end of the story. Mrs. Hoodhood served a mother-ly role in the story, and Danny Hupfer was truly a good buddy to Holling.
   Students at Portola would find this book interesting because the main character is about the same age as us middle-schoolers, so we can see why he makes some of his decisions or does what he does.
Reviewed by Allen M.
 
 
 
   The Wednesday Wars by Gary Schmidt is a story about a boy, Holling HoodHood in the seventh grade. The story takes place in 1697 during the Vietnam War. Besides his teacher hating him Holling has many problems of his own to take care of. For instance like the time he had to play the fairy with yellow tights and feathers on his butt, or when he accidently set the class rats out, or when his father started including them in the family business.
   Holling isn’t the only character that plays a main role, there is his teacher Mrs. Baker. Holling thinks that Mrs. Baker hates him. She doesn’t actually hate him, he just thinks that. They begin to develop a strong relationship throughout the story by reading Shakespeare and earning cream puffs.
   If I were to have to recommend this story to anybody it would be to a middle school student. Not only is it about one it had a lot of humor and interesting events. I would have to say my favorite part is when Holling has to play the fairy on the same night as Mickey Mantle is signing autographs. He was able to get in and talk to him, but Mantel completely blew him off and told him he was late. I enjoyed reading about how he made it through the seventh grade.
Reviewed by Carina T.
 
   Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a story about a 7th grade boy who has a life full of surprises and adventures. The main character, Holling Hoodhood, a boy who is about thirteen years old. It takes place in a school called Camillo Junior High at about present time. The conflict centers around Holling assuming his teacher, Mrs. Baker, hates him, for she gives him tests after school. The story gets complicated when there is a new plot and his sister runs away with her boyfriend. It takes another interesting turn when Mrs. Baker introduces Holling to Shakespeare. The climax is when after she introduces him to Shakespeare and she makes him do tests and quizzes on him, this is when he thinks she hates him.
   In addition to Holling Hoodhood, there were other several great characters. Mrs. Baker the teacher, Mr. Hoodhood, Meryl Lee, the really good friend/girlfriend, and his sister.
Students in Portola would find this story interesting because it is a story of a middle school child, and tells stories on his life and its troubles. They would like how it is like a comedy, romance, and mild action. They could also relate this to their lives as a kid in middle school.
   The most interesting part of the story was when Hollings sister ran away with her boyfriend and was then left alone in a train station. It surprised me because the parents didn’t do anything to help her, but Holling did. He saved up money and got her back home. I recommend this book because it is funny book, while also being romantic, and how a family can stay close no matter how far they go from each other.
Reviewed by Gal S.
 
   The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt, is a story about a boy who begins to think that his teacher hates him. She gives him harder work than everyone else, grades him unfairly, and makes him clean up the whole room after class. It takes place in a seventh grade class during 1967. The conflict centers on him and his teacher, Mrs. Baker, and the Hoodhood associates, his family business. The story gets complicated when Holling Hoodhood and Mrs. Baker begin to bond. It takes another interesting turn when Mrs. Baker figured out that Holling was Presbyterian.
   In addition to Holling, there were many other great characters such as Mrs. Baker, Mr. and Mrs. Hoodhood, who served a role in the main plot. Mr. Hoodhood had greatly impacted Holling, his son. He made him not complain, which helped him bond with Ms. Baker.
   Students at Portola would find the story interesting because they could relate to Holling. Being in seventh grade and thinking that a teacher hates you, then figuring out that s/he is very fond of you. They could also relate to their parent putting pressure on them not do anything that will affect them in a bad way.
    The most interesting part of the story was when Holling and his friends went to play at Yankee stadium with all of the famous baseball players. I would recommend this book to read during homeroom or some free time. This was a good book because you can really relate to a lot of the things that Holling is going through.
Reviewed by Naor I.
 
   In the novel The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt a seventh grader named Holling Hoodhood is having a bit of a problem, he believes that his English teacher, Mrs. Baker, hates him. Every Wednesday since Holling does not go to Hebrew school or Catechism he is stuck with Mrs. Baker and so began the Wednesday Wars. One Wednesday Mrs. Baker brings in a batch of cream puffs for all the army wives in the town(Mrs. Baker’s husband is a lieutenant in the army) and all of Holling’s friends, Meryl Lee, Danny Hupfer, Mai Thi(who is Vietnamese) and Doug Swietech, all want one. All of the students leave and Mrs. Baker sends Holling out onto the PE area to pound erasers on a brick wall, but there’s just one little problem: Mrs. Baker left the window open for the cream puffs to cool; Holling hurried but was too late, every last cream puff was coated with chalk dust. Mrs. Baker then tells Holling to clean out the cage of her two rats Sycorax and Caliban but it goes horribly wrong the rats get out and hide in the walls and if that’s not bad enough Mrs. Baker gives Holling a cream puff chalk and all and to top it off all the other kids want Holling to get them cream puffs. Now on Wednesdays Holling and Mrs. Baker read and discuss Shakespeare. Holling soon discovers that his father has a big business deal with Mrs. Bakers family and that Mrs. Baker isn’t so bad; she teaches him how to run for the track course and Holling helps her with what she should do to impress the administrators that are coming to the class. But then Sycorax and Caliban come running out during Holling’s running exam looking down right murderous and they chase Holling all around the track. Holling goes to the baker to get a batch of cream puffs and doesn’t have enough money but takes part in the baker’s Shakespeare plat in return for the cream puffs. At the end of the school year Meryl Lee and Holling are going out, the whole class takes a camping trip, Mai Thi gets adopted, and Lieutenant Baker comes home.
   I think that Holling was the most interesting character in the story. I think this because a lot of weird stuff happens to him and I think I can kind of relate to the guy. This book really lays Holling on the line about who he is and that’s why he’s the most interesting character.
   I think that the most interesting part of the book was when Sycorax and Caliban chase Holling around the track because it is not only really strange but also, in my opinion, really funny.
   My overall opinion on The Wednesday Wars is that it is a real page turner I with some difficulty put it down to do my homework. I recommend this book to everyone.
Reviewed by Preston S.
 
   The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a story about a boy who has to stay after school, every Wednesday with his teacher, Mrs. Baker, while the Catholic students go to catechism and the Jewish kids go the Hebrew school. The main character is Holling Hoodhood, a boy who’s life is always confusing. It takes place in Long Island, New York during the Vietnam War in the year 1967. The conflict centers on every Wednesday when Holling is the only student in Mrs. Bakers class after school. The story gets complicated when Holling competes in track team. The climax happens when they go to a camping trip and the class gets along very well with Holling, even Mrs. Baker and his family gets back together again.
   In addition to Holling Hoodhood there were several other great characters. Heather Hoodhood serves a role as Holling’s sister. She is sixteen years old and hates Holling. One day she gets in a fight with her dad and ran away to California for about a week. Her dad didn’t care at all. Holling is the one who saved Heather and actually cared. Meryl Lee Kowalski serves a role as a girl who has been in love with Holling since third grade. On Valentine’s Day, Holling asks her to be her valentine and they went on a little date. Holling showed Meryl Lee his dad’s project and she told her dad which has the same job. Holling got very mad. In the camping trip, Meryl Lee also always helped Holling with whatever he did.
   Students at Portola would find the story interesting because it takes place during the Vietnam War and it gives a little description on how schools prepared for bombs. It shows us that kids in the past still live the same ways as we do this century. This story also tells us that you should never give up on a teacher even if you think they hate you because they are only being harsh on you so you can actually learn.
   The most interesting part of the story was when Heather had ran away because I wondered how the Hoodhood family would feel and live without their oldest child. It surprised me because I knew she was mad at her dad, but I didn’t know she would react by running away. I recommend this book because the author gives brief descriptions on the settings so you get a good image in your head and because it describes a regular kids life that has some ups and downs. Also it shows how Holling changed from the beginning of the story to the end.
Reviewed by Sharona T.
 
   The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a story about a boy named Holling. Holling is a 7th grade boy who is neither Jewish nor Catholic, he is Presbyterian. It takes place in a place called Long Island during World War 2. The conflict is centered around him being the only student in Mrs. Baker’s class on Wednesday afternoons. This is conflict because Holling has it in his mind that Mrs. Baker hates him. This story gets complicated when Mrs. Baker has Holling read Shakespeare outside of class. It takes another interesting turn when Holling is Ariel, one of the characters in the Tempest. The climax is when Meryl Lee’s father and Holling’s father are competing for a position needing and architect. In addition to Holling, there were other several good characters; such as Meryl Lee. She was Holling’s date on Valentine’s Day.   Students at Portola would find this book interesting because the kids are about the same age, only the setting in the book is in 1967 (during World War 2). They could also relate to the embarrassing, fun, and unusual moments. The most interesting part of the story (to me), was when Holling and his class went on their camping trip, but Mrs. Baker hated camping. It surprised me because she didn’t seem to mind camping. I recommend this book because it is very funny and many people can somehow relate to it.
Review by Audrey D.
 
   Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a story about a 7th grade boy who has a life full of surprises and adventures. The main character, Holling Hoodhood, a boy who is about thirteen years old. It takes place in a school called Camillo Junior High at about present time. The conflict centers around Holling assuming his teacher, Mrs. Baker, hates him, for she gives him tests after school. The story gets complicated when there is a new plot and his sister runs away with her boyfriend. It takes another interesting turn when Mrs. Baker introduces Holling to Shakespeare. The climax is when after she introduces him to Shakespeare and she makes him do tests and quizzes on him, this is when he thinks she hates him.
   In addition to Holling Hoodhood, there were other several great characters. Mrs. Baker the teacher, Mr. Hoodhood, Meryl Lee, the really good friend/girlfriend, and his sister.
Students in Portola would find this story interesting because it is a story of a middle school child, and tells stories on his life and its troubles. They would like how it is like a comedy, romance, and mild action. They could also relate this to their lives as a kid in middle school.
   The most interesting part of the story was when Hollings sister ran away with her boyfriend and was then left alone in a train station. It surprised me because the parents didn’t do anything to help her, but Holling did. I recommend this book because it is funny book, while also being romantic, and how a family can stay close no matter how far they go from each other.
Reviewed by Gal S.
 
   The book, Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a story about a 7th grade kid named Holling Hoodhood who is having trouble in junior high. Everyone at Camillo Junior High is either Catholic or Jewish. Holling Hoodhood is neither meaning that on Wednesday afternoons he is assigned to Mrs. Bakers while the Jewish kids attend Hebrew school and the Catholics attend catechism.
The main character is Holling Hoodhood, a 7th grade boy who is stuck with Mrs. Baker’s class every Wednesday afternoons. It takes place at Long Island, in New York at Camillo Junior High during the time of Holling Hoodhood’s 7th grade year every after school from 1:45 till the end of school.
   The conflict center around when Holling Hoodhood is stuck with Mrs. Baker After schools on Wednesday’s doing things like cleaning erasers and cleaning the coatroom. One afternoon Mrs. Baker orders him to move trays of cream puffs the school chef had baked. After he is done with these tasks she makes him clean more erasers. The story gets complicated when Mrs. Baker would give Holling quizzes in English class and would give him a very hard time. It takes another interesting turn when she gives him challenges and criticizes his grammar when he answers, gives him extremely complex sentences to diagram in English class.
   The climax is when Mrs. Baker makes him read Shakespeare. Shakespeare to a seventh grader boy is as worst as it gets. But it gets even worse when he soon is left playing the part of a fairy in the local Shakespeare play wearing yellow tights with feathers.
   In addition to Holling Hoodhood there were several other great
characters which are Heather Hoodhood who is Hollings older sister. Also Mrs. Baker who is the mean teacher who Holling Hoodhood is assigned to every Wednesdays. Students at Portola would find the story interesting because it involves mean teachers and the way the story is told we can all relate to maybe things that happened to us in school. They could also relate to involve a kid in Junior high which is similar to kids in my school because we are also in Junior high.
  The most interesting part of the story was when Hollings was assigned to perform in a Shakespeare play. It surprised me because he had to wear yellow tights and feathers around and he didn’t back out. I recommend this book because its something you can relate to.
Reviewed by Diba H.
 
   The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a story about a boy and his confrontation with his teacher in 7th grade. The main character is Holling Hoodhood, a boy who feels his English teacher is out to get him. It takes place in 1967 during a time where Vietnam and America are fighting. The conflict centers around Holling Hoodhood and Mrs. Baker. The story gets complicated when Holling has to spend every Wednesday with Mrs. Baker. It takes another interesting turn when Holling has to play Ariel, a character from Shakespeare’s “The Tempest”, in Mr. Goldman’s play. The climax is very interesting because Holling has to play a fairy in yellow tights.
   In addition to Holling, there are several other great characters. Danny Hupfer, a boy who served the role as one of Holling’s best friends.
Students at Portola would find this story interesting because we are around Holling’s age so we would understand his perspective. They could also relate to the felling that your teacher is out to get you.
   The most interesting part of the story was when Holling went to get his baseball signed. It surprised me because the baseball player didn’t give him a signature just because of what he was wearing. I recommend this book because it’s an interesting story.
Reviewed by Valeska T.
 
   The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schimidt is about a student’s seventh grade journey. The main character, Holling Hoodhood, is a young boy who goes to Camillo Junior High. It takes place in the 1900s during a time of war between America and Vietnam. The conflict centers around Holling Hoodhood being afraid of his teacher, Mrs. Baker, assuming that she hates him. The story gets complicated when he has to stay in his teacher’s class every Wednesday for a few extra hours. He needs to stay longer than the rest of the kids because on Wednesdays half the kids in his class go to Hebrew school and the other half go to catechism class and because he is neither Jewish or Catholic, he has no other place to go. It takes another interesting turn when his teacher makes him read Shake Spear. I think the climax of the story was when Holling performed a Shake Spear play and got made fun of for it.
   In addition to Holling Hoodhood, there were many other characters. Like Meryl Lee, who had a crush on Holling and even went out with him and his friends Doug and Danny, who stuck up for him when he was in need. His teacher, Mrs Baker, also played a big role in the plot of the story. Though his parents and older sister weren’t main characters, they were also in many parts of the story.
   Students at Portola would find the story interesting because it can relate to their lives in middle school. They can also relate to it by how Holling feels. The most interesting part of the story was how much the kids loved cream puffs and how much they could buy with such little money, but after all it was the mid 1900s. It surprised me because it made Holling’s life sound so realistic. I recommend this book because it’s interesting and very easy to relate to.
Reviewed by Targol M.
 
   The Wednesday Wars by Gary Schmidt is a story about finding hope and strength in even the toughest times imaginable. The main character is Holling Hoodhood, a Presbyterian boy who is in the seventh grade. He is convinced his teacher hates him for his Presbyterian beliefs. It takes place during the time of the war in Vietnam. The conflict centers on Holling and his relationship with his teacher, Mrs. Baker. His father, the owner of the Hoodhood and Associates architecture firm, makes Holling stand whatever Mrs. Baker throws at him because her business is considering his father’s. The story gets complicated when Mrs. Baker throws another entirely different chore at Holling on Wednesdays: Shakespeare. It takes another interesting turn when the lunch lady’s husband dies, who was a soldier in Vietnam. She takes it out on Holling's classmate, a Vietnam girl who was saved in a raid. The climax is when Mrs. Baker’s husband returns from Vietnam, alive.
   In addition to Holling Hoodhood, there were several other great characters. Mrs. Baker, the teacher, who served the role as Hollings torturer and teacher, and later his friend.
   Students at Portola would like this story because it is funny, has embarrassing moments for some characters (which kids can relate to), and has an interesting storyline. They could also relate to this story because it happens mostly at school, where we are all day also.
   The most interesting part of the story was Mrs. Baker's meaningless chores directed at Holling. It surprised me because I thought that no teacher could be that mean and selfless. I recommend this book because it is interesting, funny, and draws you in so you always want to read more.
Reviewed by Ryan M.
 
   Wednesday Wars is a story about a boy who is battling through seventh grade. The main character is unnamed, a boy who has been struggling through seventh grade. It takes place in Camillo Junior High, 1967. The conflict enters in September when he figures out his teacher is out to get him. The story gets complicated when his teacher begins to act a little different toward him.
   In addition to the boy there were several other characters including Ms. Baker and Doug Swietek. Students at Portola would find the story interesting because of its comic nature. The kids would be able to relate to the story because it has to do with middle school. The most interesting part of the story to me was when I heard of the 410 ways to get a teacher to hate you.
Reviewed by Josh M.
 
   Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a story about a boy’s life as he goes through seventh grade. The main character is Holling HoodHood, a boy who is Presbyterian. This story takes place in September of 1967 all the way through June of 1968. This story also happens during the Vietnam War. The conflict of the story is that just because Holling is Presbyterian, he believes his teacher hates his guts. This story takes a turn when Holling starts to realize that maybe his teacher doesn’t really hate his guts. The climax of this story is when Holling starts to become friends with his teacher.
   In addition to Holling there were several other great characters. Mrs. Baker, Holling’s seventh grade teacher, was a great character in this book. Mrs. Baker was tough on Holling, but eventually Holling figured out that Mrs. Baker wasn’t that bad after all. Another character was Mr. Hoodhood who served the role as Holling’s father. He was very involved in his business of architecture and soon hoped that Holling would inherit his business.
   Students at Portola would find this interesting because this is a story has interesting details and allows you to imagine how the story is. They could also relate to the story because it is about a boy who is about the same age as many people in the school.
   The most interesting part in the story was when Holling’s sister left her family so that she could find herself. It surprised me because as much as sometimes I would want to leave when I am mad, I would never leave my family because I know that they care about me. I would recommend this book because it is a very exciting story that allows you to sometimes relate to past experiences.
Reviewed by Michelle K.
 
   The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a story about a family who just moved to a new town. The main character is Rolling Hoodhood. The story is based during the Vietnam War in 1967, when everyone had bigger things to worry about, than Ms. Baker hating Holling’s guts. The conflict centers on the fact that Rolling has just moved, and his seventh grade teacher, Ms. Baker, hates him. The story gets complicated when Rolling and Ms. Baker have to stay after school, on every Wednesdays, because the other students leave early to go to either to Temple Beth-El or Saint Andrew Presbyterian Church, depend on their family. It takes another interesting turn when Rolling and Ms. Baker start to get along.
   In addition to Holling, there were several other great characters. Ms. Baker, Rolling seventh grade teacher, who served a role as a difficult person to get along with because she is very strict. She and Holling, in the end, become teacher-student friends. Another great character is, Meryl Lee Kowalski, who has loved Holling Hoodhood since the third grade, she played a role, as a good friend to Holling, helping him along the way with some of his problems with Ms. Baker.
   Students at Portola would find the story interesting because it is based on something that some students may have going on in their classes. They could also relate to Holling because, he is in seventh grade and his life may be like ours. It may not be in that time period but some of the same issues are happening now.
   The most interesting part of the story was when Holling got himself into a problem, which ended up in him hafting to buy enough cream puffs for the whole class. He has to come up with the money himself. It surprised me because I would have thought that Ms. Baker would have helped him with the money, since part of it was her fault. I don’t recommend the book because, it seems to drag on for a long time, not getting to the point. It had a lot of unnecessary details that we didn’t need to know. Although some people may like that kind of book, I disliked it.
Reviewed by Natalie M.
 
   The story is about a kid named Holling Hoodhood who is stuck in his classroom on Wedsdnays, which takes away his teachers free time. The reason he is stuck in there is because every Wednsday half the class goes to church for the remainder of the day, and the other half goes to temple. Holling is Presbyterian, so he must stay in the classroom. His teacher Mrs. Baker, does not like her free time to be soaked up by Holling. Tension starts to build between them. The story has many strands. While Holling is in the classroom on Wednsday, Mrs. Baker is making him read Shakespeare. She also is asking him to bring cupcakes for the class. His friends start threatening him if he doesn't bring them. Another strand in the story was Mrs. Baker's husband dying in the war. Although that does link to why Holling was being nice and bringing the cupcakes.
   When Mrs. Baker feels better, Holling finds no reason to be good in her Wednsday class, up until he finds out his father is working for her family and it might be the best proposition that they ever had! His father is demanding he showed respect in fear that she will not want to work for him.
   So Holling is stuck in his classroom for the rest of the school year reading Shakespeare, and being EXTREMELY nice even when Mrs. Baker is really mean. I reccomend this book for kids around Hollings age because you can relate to it and it is a very silly, fun book.
Reviewed by Noah Y.
 
   The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a story about a family who just moved to a new town. The main character is Rolling Hoodhood. The story is based during the Vietnam War in 1967, when everyone had bigger things to worry about, than Ms. Baker hating Holling’s guts. The conflict centers on the fact that Rolling has just moved, and his seventh grade teacher, Ms. Baker, hates him. The story gets complicated when Rolling and Ms. Baker have to stay after school, on every Wednesdays, because the other students leave early to go to either to Temple Beth-El or Saint Andrew Presbyterian Church, depend on their family. It takes another interesting turn when Rolling and Ms. Baker start to get along.
   In addition to Holling, there were several other great characters. Ms. Baker, Rolling seventh grade teacher, who served a role as a difficult person to get along with because she is very strict. She and Holling, in the end, become teacher-student friends. Another great character is, Meryl Lee Kowalski, who has loved Holling Hoodhood since the third grade, she played a role, as a good friend to Holling, helping him along the way with some of his problems with Ms. Baker.
   Students at Portola would find the story interesting because it is based on something that some students may have going on in their classes. They could also relate to Holling because, he is in seventh grade and his life may be like ours. It may not be in that time period but some of the same issues are happening now.
   The most interesting part of the story was when Holling got himself into a problem, which ended up in him hafting to buy enough cream puffs for the whole class. He has to come up with the money himself. It surprised me because I would have thought that Ms. Baker would have helped him with the money, since part of it was her fault. I don’t recommend the book because, it seems to drag on for a long time, not getting to the point. It had a lot of unnecessary details that we didn’t need to know. Although some people may like that kind of book, I disliked it.
Reviewed by Natalie M.
 
   Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a story about a seventh grade boy who knows his teacher is out to get him. The main character, Holling Hoodhood is a boy who is very loyal, patient, and obeys what his parents and teachers tell him to do. It takes place in 1976 during a time when the Vietnam War was around. The conflict centers on Holling not being Jewish or Catholic. In that case he has to stay in Mrs. Baker’s classroom on Wednesdays cleaning her erasers, closets and anything else she asks him to do. The story gets complicated when Holling’s classmates threaten to kill him if he doesn’t get then cream puffs. It takes another turn when pictures of Holling wearing yellow tights get all over the school. The climax is when Mrs. Baker decided to make Holling Hoodhood perform Shakespeare.
   Students at Portola Middle School would find the story interesting because Holling gets into a lot of difficult situations, and has to work around them and find ways to fix them. They could also relate to this because I know many students that think their teachers are out to get them. Also many students get bullied just like Holling did.
   The most interesting part of the story was when Holling finally got the cream puffs for his classmates and they got ruined. It surprised me because I thought that he would be able to give the class the cream puffs peacefully and then his classmates would leave him alone. I do not recommend this book because I thought it got boring at times and was way to repetitive.
Reviewed by Natalie L.
 
   The Wednesday Wars is a book about a boy who has to deal with the troubles of seventh-grade life. The boys name is Holling Hoodhood, and he lives in Long Island, New York. The story takes place on 1967, during the Viet Nam war. The conflict that Holling faces is how to deal with his teachers. He is convinced that his English teacher, Mrs. Baker, hates his guts. Because Holling does not attend any religious school on Wednesday, he and Mrs. Baker spend every Wednesday afternoon together, studying Shakespeare. By spending all of this time together, Holling and Mrs. Baker become friends. At the end of the story, Mrs. Baker’s husband returns from the war, and Holling attends his friend Danny’s bar mitzvah.
   As well as Holling, there were some other interesting characters. There was Mrs. Baker, his English teacher, who I mentioned in the opening paragraph. Another character was Doug Swieteck, who created a list called, “ 410 Ways to get a Teacher to Hate You”. Merylee was a girl who had an interesting relationship with Holling. They liked each other, but had families who competed in business. This is very similar to the relationship between Romeo and Juliet.
   I think that students would find this book interesting because of the stress that Holling had in school. They would be able to relate to the relationships between teacher and student. They would also relate to the student-to-student relationships.
   I found the book to be pretty mediocre. I did not think that the story was very interesting. I thought that all of the Shakespeare references were a bit excessive. I would not recommend this book because the story moved pretty slowly, and the characters were stereotypical.
Reviewed by Nick D.
 
   Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a story about a seventh-grade boy who knows his teacher is out to get him. The main character, Holling HoodHood is a boy who is very loyal, patient, and obeys what his parents and teachers tell him to do. The story takes place in 1976 which was the time the Vietnam War was around. The story gets complicated when Holling's classmates threaten to kill him if he doesnt get them cream puffs. It takes another turn when a picture of Holling wearing yellow tights gets all around the school.
   Students at Portola Middle Schoool would find the story interesting because Holling gets into alot of situations, and has to learn to find ways to fix the problems. The students can also relate to this because many kids think their teacher hates them. Also many students are bullied just like Holling did in the story. The most interesting part of the story was when Holling finally got the cream puffs for his classmates and his classmates finally left him alone. I don't reccomand this book because after awhile it got boring with the same situations happening.
Reviewed by Kiana H.
 
   The Wednesday Wars is a story about a boy living in 1967/1968 (during the Vietnam War.) His name is Holling Hoodhood (funny name huh) and he thinks that his seventh grade teacher hates his guts. When he tells his mom she says your teacher doesn’t hate your guts, his dad says it might hurt a business deal, and his sister says I hate them to. The conflict centers around Holling and how he gets through the school year and about all the obstacles him, and the rest of his class have to deal with.
   Several other important characters to the story were Mrs. Baker (the teacher), Danny Hupfer (Holling’s best friend), Meryl Lee (Holling’s girlfriend), Mai Thai (Danny’s girlfriend), and Doug Sweiteck (Holling and Danny’s friend).
   Students at Portola would find the book interesting because it talks about a lot of middle school drama and they could all relate to it. They could also relate to the fact that the may have had a teacher that they thought hated them.
   The most interesting part of the story was when Holling made the varsity cross-country team by running as fast as possible way from two rats trying to attack him. It surprised me because the rats were supposed to be exterminated but they escaped from the exterminator just to attack Holling. I recommend this book because it’s very interesting, fun to read, and, at times, funny.
Reviewed by Ian B.
 
   Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a story about a boy who thinks his English teacher Mrs. Baker hates his guts. The main character is Holling Hoodhood, a boy who does not know what is going to happen to him in his second year at Camillo Junior High. It takes place during the Vietnam War. The conflict centers on after he does his performance of one of Shakespeare’s many famous plays. After he performs everybody starts to make fun of him. The girls on the other hand, think it was lovely. The story starts to get complicated when Mrs. Baker assigns him Hamlet and many other Shakespeare books. His father has a rival in business, his sister leaves home because of different political views, his date with Meryl Lee goes down the drain, and his friends have a hard and good time with their favorite sport, baseball. It takes another interesting turn when Mrs. Baker starts to like Holling Hoodhood as a student. He actually likes the books and tries his hardest to succeed. The climax is when Mrs. Baker takes them on a field trip to the woods. The camp out for several days and don’t do any English related things the whole week. Joy, oh, Joy at last!
   In addition to Holling Hoodhood there were several other great characters. There were Meryl Lee, Doug Swieteck, and Mrs. Baker. They served the role as his friends and his English teacher. Students at Portola would like this because they can relate this story to their own personal lives, no matter if it’s good or not.
   The most interesting part of this story was when Mrs. Baker reunited with her husband Mr. Baker, who was a soldier and was lost, but they found him and brought him home unharmed. It surprised me because I thought that he would be lost forever. When they reunited I started crying! I recommend this book because you can read it in a day, if you like it. I loved it and I think students would really like it.
Reviewed by Deena L.
 
   Have you ever thought that your teacher just simply hated you? Did she make you do all these crazy chores that you thought was just to make you miserable? Well, This is exactly what is going in young Holling Hoodhood's life in school. In this novel by Gary D. Schmidt, Holling is in the middle of the Vietnam War; he lives in Long Island and is going through a tough time. Mrs. Baker (his teacher) is only choosing him to do his chores and do Shakespeare with her. In this book Holling has many mini adventures that become very interesting in my opinion, with a great climax to this book.
   This story has many characters, such as Holling Hoodhood, which is the main character. We also have Mrs. Baker the teacher who Holling believes hates him. Mr. Hoodhood the man obsessed with his work, and Heather Holling’s sister that Mr. Hoodhood won’t let to college until she finds herself. He also has a few classmates that are mentioned like: Mai Tia, Meryl Lee, Doug Swieteck, and Danny Hupfer.
   This book would be great for Portola because these kids could relate to this. They can understand the situations like Holling. They can also enjoy the great humor in this book. They have many funny parts, but the best I thought was when Holling had to wear tights and do Shakespeare as a fairy.
   My favorite part in the book was in the end when Mrs. Baker finally sees her husband again. It was very heart warming and a great ending to the story. It was also the moment when everything was going great for Holling and everyone around him. I enjoyed this book. It kept you thinking how Holling was going to get out of his predicament. I give this book a five star rating, because it is the best I have ever read!
Reviewed by Adam E.
 
   Have you ever had a teacher who you thought hated you? Well, this is how seventh grader Holling Hoodhood feels in The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt. The story takes place in Long Island, New York in 1967 during the Vietnam War. The conflict centers around the main character Holling and his teacher, Mrs. Baker. He feels she hates him, because she gives him chores and makes him read Shakespeare. The story gets complicated when Holling ruins a batch of cream puffs. Then the two class rats escape. The story takes another interesting turn when Holling plays Ariel the fairy in a Shakespeare play. The climax is when Holling rescues his sister after she runs away.
   In addition to Holling, there were a few other great characters. Mrs. Baker wants to see Holling succeed and helps him in both academics and sports, serving the role of a mentor. Holling’s father, Mr. Hoodhood, is only concerned with what is best for his business. Holling’s sister, Heather, needs to "find herself" and her father won‘t let her go to college.
   Students at Portola would find the story interesting because it is about a kid in seventh grade who is insecure at the beginning of the school year, but who grows and matures from all of his experiences. They could also relate to having a teacher they may not like who is strict and hard, but who they ending up liking after all because they learn so much.
   The most interesting part of the story was when Mrs. Baker tells Holliing she had been an Olympic runner. It surprised me because it didn’t seem like she was the type who would be a good runner. I enjoyed reading about all the ups and downs of Holling during his seventh grade year, month by month. I would recommend this book because it is about seventh grade, which is what my friends and I are in!
Reviewed by Michael R.
 
   Wednesday Wars by Gary Schmidt is a story about a seventh grader. Holling thinks he has an evil teacher, her name is Mrs. Baker. The conflict centers on Holling’s bouts with his Ms. Baker, and the story gets complicated when he has to read Shakespeare’s so called boring novel. His life takes another huge turn when he goes to a Valentine Ball, in the school he goes to. Even though this may seem wonderful, there are rats, Sycorax and Caliban, climbing around in the air vents because he accidentally let them free.
   The other characters are Danny Hupfer, Doug Swieteck, Mickey Mantle, Meryl lee, Mia Tia, and many other unforgetable characters. They were almost all classmates in Hollings class, execpt Mickey Mantle, who is a famous baseball player who came to Long Island during the Long Island Shakesphere Competition.
   Students at Portola would enjoy this book because it can really happen in real life and there is also a tiny amount of humor in this book, like Holling having to wear tights with feathers on his butt and so forth. They could also make conections because some of them go to drama classes and English classes , and because there are always ups and downs in everyone’s life.
   My favorite part of this book was when he had to wear those tights because it shows how something you like can turn horrible. I recommend this book because of its memberable characters, actions, words, and its amazing array of humor and a dash of suspence that will leave you guessing.
Reviewed by Tyler G.
 
   Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a story about a boy in 7th grade. The main character is Holling HoodHood in the middle of his neighborhood. It takes place in 1967; during a time of the War. The conflict centers on Holling’s life, in which many good and bad things happen. The story gets complicated when the class pets are let loose by accident, and when Holling faces many death threats. It takes another interesting turn when Holling agrees to perform a Shakespeare play for Mr. Goldman. He ends up playing the character Ariel, who is a fairy. The climax is when Holling’s sister, Heather, decides to run away with Chit, her friend, to “find herself”.
   Holling Hoodhood is the main character and there are other characters that are important as well. Mrs. Baker is the next main character, who is Hollings teacher. Holling thinks she hates his guts in the story. Later on in the story they become closer and closer as friends until their friends at one point.
   Students at Portola would find the story interesting because Holling Hoodhood is around 12 just like us 7 graders and we go through the same problems as he does except for one when he thinks his teacher hates his guts. We are also like him in other ways like when something bad happens to him and right before it becomes the best day ever something bad or even horrible happens to him just like us.
   My favorite part of the story was when Holling does the Shakespeare play. It's also interesting when he almost misses Mackie Mantle, who lies to him later on. It is weird because Danny Hupfer was a great friend and nowhere near an enemy. I recommend this book because it is great once you start reading it. This book is great is you like when people have to suffer and try to solve everything on their own.
Reviewed by Michael S.
   The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a story about Holling Hoodhood, a boy who ends up with 7th grade with a teacher named Mrs. Baker, who Holling thinks hates his guts. Throughout the year Holling learns to love Shakespeare, becomes a cross country runner, and realizes that Mrs. Baker did not hate his guts and that she was only there to help him even beyond school. This takes place in 1967 during the Vietnam War. The conflict centers on Holling’s family. The story gets complicated when the class pets get loose and hide in the ceiling. It takes another interesting turn when Lieutenant Baker goes missing. The climax of the story is when Heather, Holling's sister goes to California to “find herself.”
   In addition to Holling Hoodhood there were several other great characters. Mrs. Baker served a role as being a mentor to Holling at the same time his English teacher. Also there is Holling’s father who served the role for getting Holling ready to take the family architecture business.
   Students at Portola would find the story interesting because they are many funny parts to it and amazingly realistic, yet at the same time unbelievable. They could also relate to the story because a lot of them are in seventh grade so some parts of story they have gone through themselves.
   The most interesting part of the story was when Holling dressed up in yellow tights to act as a fairy in a Shakespeare play. It surprised me because I didn’t think he would go through with it because all his friends would tease and laugh at him. I recommend this book because it was about life events and how you deal with different situations no matter what your age and everyone deals with these situations in different ways.
Reviewed by Brandon N.
 
   In this book, a boy named Holling Hoodhood is a seventh grader in the 60's. He realizes that his teacher is out to get him. How, you may ask? Well a teacher doesn't assign cut out days for reading Shakespeare. Mrs. Baker puts Holling through a lot on Wednesdays, like taking care of Sycorax and Caliban; the rats that are always up to something. Holling has his own problems to deal with; classmates, the family business, and being told to be in a play wearing bright yellow tights with white feathers on the seat of them.
   In my opinion, I strongly recommend you read this book because it is interesting, you can relate to it, and Gary D. Schmidt creates true laughter, classics, and realistic fiction that basically anyone can read.
Reviewed by Monique M.
 
   The Wednesday Wars  by Gary D. Schmidt is a story about a boy who’s father is an architect and is trying to pass on the family business. The main character is Holling Hoodhood, a boy who at first is not that smart but gets smarter and smarter throughout the school year with his new teacher. It takes place in Long Island, New York during a time of war. The conflict centers around Holling and his family. The story gets complicated when Holling’s older sister runs away to find herself. It takes another interesting turn when Holling enters a race to get money, and he wins the money. The climax starts when Holling stars in a school play but gets embarrassed when his picture is posted around the whole school.
   In addition to Holling Hoodhood’s there were several other great characters. Mrs. Baker, the teacher who served a role as the person who helps Holling with any problems he has.
   Students at Portola would find the story interesting because it has a lot of drama. They could also relate to a movie with a rising action. The most interesting part of the story was when Hollin’s sister ran away. It surprised me because I thought she was a hippie. I recommend this book because it’s very interesting.
Reviewed by Alex M.
 
  The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is about a boy named Holling Hoodhood who’s in seventh grade. The main character is a boy named Holling Hoddhood, who deals with many hard situations, including his teacher. It takes place during 1967. The conflict centers on Holling and his time during seventh grade. The story gets complicated when he has to deal with Mrs. Baker and the rest of his miserable part of seventh grade (yellow tights, Shakespeare, class pets, etc). It takes another interesting turn when Holling finds himself going to a Shakespeare concert with his true love, Meryl Lee. The climax starts when Holling's sister leaves the family to go find a college.
   In addition to Holling, there were several other great characters. Doug Seitweck's brother, the conflict starter, served a role as the bully. There was also Holling's dad, who served the role of a dad and the boss of Hoodhood and Associates.
Portola students: I assure you would love this kind of book. I think you would find this book interesting because it has many fun and exciting parts. Besides, the book never gets boring.
   The most interesting part of the book was when Holling has forced to wear yellow tights and play a fairy in front of so many people. But it only gets worse. At the end of the play the kids get to meet Mickey mantle, the number one baseball player and get his autograph. When Holling was getting his autograph, Mickey Mantle asked him if he was wearing yellow tights and Holling said yes. Mickey Mantle stopped signing and said “I do not sign for boys who dress up in yellow tights”. Holling never got his autograph. It surprised me because I never knew how embarrassing it was to get refused by a very popular person. I recommend this book because it has many fun parts you wouldn’t want to miss. Read it and you will not regret it, trust me.
Reviewed by Justin E.
 
   Okay, so it is a rainy day. You are stuck inside your house and you can’t play with your friends because they all came down with the flu. So, you are sitting on your bed and by now the rain is coming down so hard that it is flooding in your backyard. And so, you are wondering, does anybody have it harder in life than I do right now.
In the story, The Wednesday Wars by Gary Schmidt, Holling Hoodhood really has it hard. He has just started seventh grade and his teacher, Mrs.Baker, already hates him. Holling’s father is no help, though. After all, Holling and the rest of the Hoodhoods must be on their best behavior because Hoodhood and Associates depends on it. Holling has plenty of issues throughout the year, though. Like the time he is forced to be a fairy named Ariel in a Shakespeare play. Or the time Holling accidentally set the classroom pet rats loose from their cage. And, on top of all of this, it is 1967 and the Vietnam War is going on. But in the end, Holling finds the good in his life, and that you should appreciate everything that you have and experience as a person. Like the time he got to go on the Yankee stadium’s field as well as meet all of the players. And that is just the beginning. That is what The Wednesday Wars is about.
   If I were to recommend this novel to anyone, I would recommend The Wednesday Wars to people who enjoy reading stories with lots of humor in it. I personally loved The Wednesday Wars just because I loved all of the characters, especially Holling Hoodhood. I also loved all of the adventures that Holling goes through, and I really enjoyed how the story had a happy ending. That is why I loved the novel, The Wednesday Wars.
Reviewed by Heather B.
 
   Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a story about a boy in 7th grade. The main character is Holling Hoodhood a boy who faces a lot of conflicts. It takes place in 1967 during that Vietnam War. The conflict centers around Holling Hoodhood and all the problems he had to face and fix. The story gets complicated when the class pets get loose and when his father involves Holling in his business in Hoodhood associates. It takes another interesting turn when Holling has to a Shakespeare play that involves him wearing tights for a dozen cream puffs from Mr. Goldman. The climax is when Holling sister, Heather, decides to run away with her friend, Chit, to “find herself,” and ends up stuck in a bus station.
   In addition to Holling Hoodhood there were several other great characters like Mrs. Baker, who served a role as Holling's teacher. At first Holling thinks Mrs. Baker dislikes him and “hates his guts,” but through out the book Holling and Mrs. Baker grow close to each other.
   Students at Portola would find the story interesting because it has a lot of exciting and fascinating events. They could also relate to our life because things like this can happen except with a different concept and problem, but when things get bad they can get worse.
   This book had a lot if fascinating events, but out of all of them, my favorite and most interesting part is when Holling has to do the Shakespeare play the day Mikey Mantle is signing autographs at Baker sporting goods. So he managed to do the play and get to Bakers sporting goods on time, but at the end Mikey Mantle blew him off. Holling was very disappointed until a good friend came along. This book may seem boring at first, but as you read it will grab your attention and will make you want to read more.
Reviewed by Sean G.
 
   Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt is a story about a boy in 7th grade. The main character is Holling Hood Hood, a boy who lives right in the middle of his town. It takes place in the 60’s, during a time of war. The conflict centers around Holling’s life, in which many good and bad things happen. The story gets complicated when the class pets are let loose by accident, and when Holling faces many death threats. It takes another interesting turn when Holling agrees to perform a Shakespeare play for Mr. Goldman. He ends up playing the character Ariel, who is a fairy. The climax is when Holling’s sister, Heather, decides to run away with Chit, her friend, to “find herself”.
   In addition to Holling Hood Hood, there were several other great characters. Mrs. Baker, the next main character, who served a role as Holling’s teacher. In the beginning Holling thinks she hates him but throughout the book they grow close to each other.
   Students at Portola would find the story interesting because Holling is around most of our ages and goes through the same things we do. They could also relate to his life because when things get good, something else bad happens, just like with a lot of other people.
   The most interesting part of the story was when Holling does the Shakespeare play and almost misses meeting Mickey Mantle, even though he blows him off. It surprised me because Danny Hupfer was such a good friend. I recommend this book because a lot of things happen and you really get into the book as you read it.
Reviewed by Amanda R.



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