Shelly's Book Blog

The Wednesday Wars, by Gary Schmidt, was a Newbery Honor book for 2008. I really loved this book, and I'm looking forward to reading more of this author's books. The Wednesday Wars is set in Long Island, New York in 1967, and the main character and narrator is a 7th grader named Holling Hoodhood. He is the only Protestant in his class, so every Wednesday afternoon, when the rest of his class attends either Catechism or Hebrew school, he and his teacher, Mrs. Baker, spend the afternoon reading Shakespeare's plays. This is a coming of age story, and both Shakespeare and Mrs. Baker help Holling learn some very important life lessons. The best part, though, is that Holling's narration is very funny. I just loved watching the interaction between Mrs. Baker and Holling, and seeing their relationship grow. This is a great book for tweens, both boys and girls.