Book Review: The Wednesday Wars
Rated by 2 members
What Parents Should Know
Parents need to know that there is little of concern here:
some products mentioned, two references to students smoking,
and a scene of two rats run over by a bus.
Families can talk about the ways in which Shakespeare helps Holling understand his life, and the ways in which his life helps him understand Shakespeare. Why does he like using Shakespeare's phrases so much? Why does he memorize it? Why do his friends unexpectedly support him as Ariel, and how does this change their relationships? How does reading Shakespeare relate to the rest of his life? And what does Mrs. Baker mean when she compares him to Don Pedro?
Common Sense Media Review
"A comedy is about characters who dare to know that they may
choose a happy ending after all."
It's a wonderful thing when an author can bring the reader to tears without anything sad happening, even better when it's done in the course of what would normally be described as "hilarious misadventures." Gary Schmidt accomplishes it by getting inside the head of a bright but fairly typical goofball seventh-grader who is doing the opposite of what so many kids at that age do -- opening his heart to the world.
With the prim prodding of his dry, no-nonsense teacher, and a big dollop of help from the Bard, Holling learns to see into the hearts of others, which causes him to stand up to his overbearing father, to care for his floundering older sister when she needs him, to recognize the depth of his friendships, to see the humanity in his teachers, and ... to begin to really understand Shakespeare. This is a funny and breathtakingly moving book, because in the end there's little that's as funny and moving as growing up -- except perhaps growing into a wise and loving person.
Common Sense Media is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing information to help parents make media and entertainment choices for their families.
