THE WEDNESDAY WARS
BOOK REVIEW | Wednesdays aren't so good for Holling Hoodhood. He's the only seventh grader at his school who doesn't attend religious classes during Wednesday afternoons, so that leaves him alone --and with plenty of work to do-- for his teacher, Mrs. Baker.
And she hates him.
But a series of events throughout the book change his relationships with everyone, from his friends, to his family, and even to Mrs. Baker.
Just some highlights of The Wednesday Wars to peak the potential reader's interest: food rotting in the classroom closet; a plot to employ hundreds of different methods to torture a teacher; rats loose in the school; even a principal who never grants a snow day (even after an ice storm).
This one was one of the sleeper hits I read this summer... never expected it to be this good. My first doubt was the seventh grade dialog: it didn't seem real in the first few chapters, to simple to have come from seventh graders. I thought the author was pegging "sevies" as too young or too simple-minded. After a few more chapters, however, I found the relationships and conversations between the students to be the best part of the book. From the threats Holling receives when he doesn't provide cream puffs to the comments involving him acting in a play, I can see that I was wrong about the dialog. It's fun to read and has insight I didn't see coming.
I recommend this one for 6th graders to adults. From dealing with weird situations in school to the difficulty of oblivious parents at home, the life of Holling Hoodhood reads about as true to life as any book you'll find.
And she hates him.But a series of events throughout the book change his relationships with everyone, from his friends, to his family, and even to Mrs. Baker.
Just some highlights of The Wednesday Wars to peak the potential reader's interest: food rotting in the classroom closet; a plot to employ hundreds of different methods to torture a teacher; rats loose in the school; even a principal who never grants a snow day (even after an ice storm).
This one was one of the sleeper hits I read this summer... never expected it to be this good. My first doubt was the seventh grade dialog: it didn't seem real in the first few chapters, to simple to have come from seventh graders. I thought the author was pegging "sevies" as too young or too simple-minded. After a few more chapters, however, I found the relationships and conversations between the students to be the best part of the book. From the threats Holling receives when he doesn't provide cream puffs to the comments involving him acting in a play, I can see that I was wrong about the dialog. It's fun to read and has insight I didn't see coming.
I recommend this one for 6th graders to adults. From dealing with weird situations in school to the difficulty of oblivious parents at home, the life of Holling Hoodhood reads about as true to life as any book you'll find.
