This book was recommended by Janssen from Everyday Reading on her top audiobooks list. I listened to it on Audible over about 2 months- not a whole lot of driving time these days! This is my review of The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt.
The Premise:
The coming of age story of Holling Hoodhood, taking place over the year he’s in the 7th grade. Holling discovers that on Wednesdays half of his class attends Hebrew School, and the other half attends Confirmation lessons, leaving Holling alone with his teacher, Mrs Baker, who he believes ’hates his guts’. The story is set in middle America with the backdrop of the Vietnam war.
What I thought:
I enjoyed this fun story, which was nice, easy reading (although I listened to it!). At first I wasn’t sure that it was perhaps a little juvenile for me, but the more I listened the more engaged I became by Holling’s story, and the stories of his friends and teachers. Maybe it’s because I’m an adult, but I found the parts with Mrs Baker’s story the most compelling, and I even almost shed a little tear at one point- don’t worry, no spoilers!
If you liked it, try:
The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell by Robert Dugoni. Although this book spans the course of a man’s life, instead of just a year, the feeling of being a kid in a transitional time in the world is captured in a similar way. Here’s the Kindle, hard copy and Audible version.
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