In Wednesday Wars, what does Holling Hoodhood want and why is it important?

The thing Holling Hoodhood wants most in life is to have a chance to determine his own destiny. Holling's father is a controlling, insensitive man who has decided that Holling will follow in his footsteps and take over his architecture company, called Hoodhood and Associates, when he comes of age. Holling's father is used to having his own way, and will not allow any dissent in his family, or anywhere else. What he says, goes, and he cruelly belittles anyone who dares defy him.

Holling does not know what he wants to do with his life; because of his talents - as Mrs. Baker tells him, he "has the soul of an architect," - he may indeed follow in his father's footsteps, career-wise, but he wants to have the chance to decide this for himself. Holling tells Mrs. Baker that the thing he is most afraid of is

"that (he) won't get the chance to see what (he) can do with the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,"

and Mrs. Baker tells him that, because of the great courage involved in securing that chance, not many people do. Holling, however, is determined, and with the lessons learned through the support of Mrs. Baker and others, as well as the insights he has gained from reading the works of Shakespeare, he finds the strength to stand up to his father. When his father tells him that becoming a man involves getting a good job, providing for one's family, and learning to "play for keeps," Holling disagrees, saying,

"I don't think so...it's not just about a job. It's more. It has to do with choosing for yourself."

The story ends on a hopeful note, and it appears that Holling will indeed have that chance to determine his own destiny.

How are Mr. Hoodhood's motives projected onto Holling in The Wednesday Wars?

In Gary Schmidt's The Wednesday Wars, one of Mr. Hoodhood's great ambitions is to pass his architecture firm, Hoodhood and Associates, down to his son Holling when Mr. Hoodhood is ready to retire. Mr. Hoodhood's ambition serves as motive to treat his business as the most important thing in his life, which leaves Holling feeling neglected. In addition, seeing Holling as the heir of the business serves as motive for Mr. Hoodhood to be easily angered anytime he feels Holling behaves in a way that may jeopardize the business.

Mr. Hoodhood ignores and neglects Holling constantly throughout the story. One example can be seen in the opening chapter when Holling goes to his father to express his concern that "Mrs. Baker hates [his] guts." Rather than expressing concern for his son, Mr. Hoodhood demands to know what Holling did to deserve it. The best example of Mr. Hoodhood neglecting Holling is seen when Mr. Hoodhood fails to fulfill his promise to take Holling to the Yankees baseball game on Opening Day.  

In addition, multiple examples of Mr. Hoodhood being easily angered by Holling can be seen since the prosperity of the business is more important to Mr. Hoodhood than Holling. For example, when Holling announces, "Dad, Mrs. Baker hates my guts," Mr. Hoodhood replies by reminding him that Hoodhood and Associates is one of the top three architecture firms the Bakers of the Baker Sporting Emporium are choosing between for their new building. He further reminds Holling that anything he did to make Mrs. Baker hate him will equally make other Bakers hate both him and the "name of Hoodhood,  which will lead the Baker Sporting Emporium to choose another architect, which will kill the deal for Hoodhood and Associates, which will drive us into bankruptcy, ... and which will mean there will be no Hoodhood and Associates for you to take over" ("September"). Likewise, Mr. Hoodhood is infuriated when he hears rumors about Holling having ruined the cream puffs served by Mrs. Baker to the Wives of Vietnam Soldiers and when he sees that Kowalski and Associates have somehow managed to steal Hoodhood and Associates' design for the new junior high school after Holling has been spending a lot of time with Meryl Lee Kowalski.