The Wednesday Wars

The Wednesday Wars by Gary Schmidt centers on Holling Hoodhood's journey from self-centeredness to maturity. Key events include Holling spending Wednesdays with Mrs. Baker, fostering his love for...

Holling's sister almost gets hit by a bus in the chapter titled "January." During this chapter, Holling faces embarrassment due to a newspaper photo of him in a play, leading to conflicts with Doug...

In The Wednesday Wars by Gary Schmidt, the initially tense relationship between Holling Hoodhood and his teacher, Mrs. Baker, evolves into a supportive bond. Holling, the only Presbyterian student,...

In The Wednesday Wars, Holling Hoodhood's relationship with Shakespeare evolves significantly. Initially reluctant, Holling is forced into a Shakespearean play, playing Ariel in an embarrassing...

Holling's cream-puff dilemma in The Wednesday Wars can actually be divided into two dilemmas, and the first is resolved when he makes the poor decision to keep quiet instead of admitting that the...

In The Wednesday Wars, the resolution and climax revolve around Holling Hoodhood's personal growth amidst the backdrop of 1960s social and political unrest. The climax occurs when Holling realizes...

In The Wednesday Wars, Holling is obsessed with Caliban's curses from The Tempest. He finds them original and interesting, preferring their rhythm and expressive quality over typical expletives....

The three adjectives that best describe Holling Hoodhood in Wednesday Wars change throughout the book. Initially, he is passive, self-absorbed, and paranoid. By the end, his character has matured,...

Mrs. Baker says "Chrysanthemum" to Holling as a special acknowledgment of his growth and courage. Earlier in the novel, Holling suggested using "Chrysanthemum" as a code for something exceptionally...

Five events mark the change in Holling's relationship with Meryl Lee from February to April: Holling asks Meryl Lee out for Valentine's Day; their date goes well and they share personal stories; a...

In The Wednesday Wars, Holling Hoodhood desires the freedom to choose his own path, resisting his father’s expectations to inherit the family architecture firm. This struggle highlights Holling’s...

The Vietnam War significantly impacts the characters in The Wednesday Wars. The war creates a backdrop of tension and uncertainty, influencing their personal lives and relationships. Characters like...

In The Wednesday Wars, Holling's sister, Heather, leaves for California to "find herself," driven by her desire for freedom and escape from their conservative father. Her journey reflects the 1960s...

Holling Hoodhood, the protagonist of The Wednesday Wars, uses his knowledge of Caliban's curses from Shakespeare's The Tempest as a form of expression and rebellion. He memorizes and practices these...

Holling Hoodhood's description of his home as the "Perfect House" in The Wednesday Wars is significant and ironic because, despite its outward appearance of perfection, the house symbolizes the...

In October, Holling Hoodhood tries to please Mrs. Baker by helping with chores, but accidentally ruins pastries with chalk dust. He avoids trouble, but faces peers' anger over cream puffs. Meanwhile,...

Mrs. Baker asks Holling to diagram a complex sentence to convey an important lesson: we often fail to appreciate what we have until it's gone. This theme reflects Holling's initial reluctance and...

Holling and Mrs. Baker have contrasting views on "Romeo and Juliet." Mrs. Baker sees it as a romantic tragedy, emphasizing the beauty and inevitability of the lovers' fate. She appreciates the depth...

Holling Hoodhood demonstrates open-mindedness by embracing Mrs. Baker's suggestion to read Shakespeare, despite initial skepticism. He enjoys the plays, showing his willingness to explore new...

Holling's relationship with his sister is strained but evolves positively over time as they begin to understand and support each other. His interactions with Doug Swieteck's brother are antagonistic,...

Holling discovers that Ariel's character in "The Wednesday Wars" is more complex and dignified than he initially thought. Despite his initial embarrassment over the fairy costume, he learns to...

Examples of onomatopoeia in Gary Schmidt's The Wednesday Wars include words like "clacking" to describe rats' teeth, "pattering" for the sound of their feet, "roaring" for a fire, "splatters" for a...

Holling wears yellow tights because he plays Ariel in Shakespeare's The Tempest for his school's Shakespeare Holiday Extravaganza. He initially gets involved in the play after needing to work off a...

Mrs. Baker was upset by Holling's comment because it showed a lack of empathy and understanding of her situation. While Holling was embarrassed by the public display of his costume photo, Mrs. Baker...

Holling's success in the cross county tryouts is due to three things. First, his teacher Mrs. Baker gives him training and support. Second, there is the presence of Meryl Lee cheering him on. Third,...

Holling predicts the future in "March" by referencing the "ides of March" from Shakespeare's Julius Caesar. He suspects bad events are imminent as the middle of the month approaches. When Meryl Lee...

Holling and Heather are upset by Robert Kennedy's assassination in The Wednesday Wars because they saw him as a hope to end the Vietnam War and fight racial discrimination. Both have been deeply...

Holling plays the role of Ariel in "The Tempest," which is a source of anxiety for him because he fears ridicule from his peers. As a seventh-grader in 1960s New York, Holling already feels isolated,...

Holling calls his home the "Perfect House" because it is centrally located and meticulously maintained, reflecting his father’s obsession with appearances. The house is in the middle of town,...

Holling believes his teacher, Mrs. Baker, hates him because she appears irritated at having to supervise him alone during religious instruction time, which he misinterprets as personal dislike....

Mrs. Baker suggests that Holling's future will have a happy ending, using Don Pedro from Much Ado About Nothing as an example. Despite misfortunes, Don Pedro knows he is loved, allowing him to choose...

After lighting a candle with Mrs. Baker, Holling prays for several things. He prays for Lieutenant Baker, missing in Vietnam, his friend Danny Kupfer, who is at Hebrew school, and his sister, who is...

Mr. Hoodhood is a man who is pretty standard, but he has dreams and desires that are understandable to the average person, which gives him a more relatable quality. He is disappointed in certain...

Holling, who has a great deal of anxiety about tests, was not prepared for the standardized achievement tests. Since he was not at all prepared for the test and because he felt so uncomfortable in...

Holling acquires cream puffs without enough money by impressing the baker with his knowledge of Shakespeare. Initially, he attempts to clean Mrs. Baker's room for a cream puff, but accidentally ruins...

Julius Caesar is a play about power. It was written by William Shakespeare, and the first act of the play takes place in Rome. The citizens of Rome are preparing for the election of a new...

Key figures in The Wednesday Wars include Holling Hoodhood, the protagonist, and his teacher, Mrs. Baker. Historical references in the novel encompass significant events from the 1960s, such as the...

Holling Hoodhood experiences a dramatic shift in his feelings towards his sports hero, Mickey Mantle. Initially, he is thrilled at the prospect of meeting Mantle, who he admires greatly. However,...

Holling initially considers "Romeo and Juliet" to be stupid because he believes the characters acted irrationally by killing themselves instead of defying their parents and running away together. His...

In The Wednesday Wars, Sycorax and Caliban, the two rats, are at Holling's cross-country race. They've managed to escape from their cages and are running after him. Meryl Lee is also there. She holds...

In The Wednesday Wars, tests play a significant role in shaping the protagonist, Holling Hoodhood's, character development. These tests are both academic, such as those in his school subjects and...

When Mrs. Baker tells Holling to "pass those boys," he responds by surging, which involves increasing his speed and tempo without sprinting. This allows him to gradually close the gap on the...

In The Wednesday Wars, Holling faces parental neglect from his self-absorbed father, leading him to seek surrogate father figures. He finds guidance and support from his teacher, Mrs. Baker, and...

After losing the two rats, Caliban and Sycorax, Holling is instructed by Mrs. Baker to fetch Mr. Vendleri. To avoid the rats running across his feet, Holling jumps from desk to desk. Upon Mr....

Mr. Hoodhood is characterized as ambitious and self-interested, prioritizing his architectural business over family. For example, he is more concerned with winning a contract from Mrs. Baker's family...

Holling is highly impressed with his father’s design for the new junior high school and discusses it with Meryl Lee Kowalski. However, when her father copies the design and submits it as his own,...

Holling, dressed in his costume as Ariel from The Tempest, responds to the bus driver's question, "Who are you supposed to be, kid?" by saying "John Wayne." Despite the unlikely comparison, the bus...

Holling acquires opening day tickets for Yankee Stadium through Mrs. Baker, who arranges a surprise meeting with famous Yankee players Joe Pepitone and Horace Clarke. As a reward for Holling's...

In the “September” chapter, Holling believes Mrs. Baker is spying on him. He has no proof of her spying, but after he notices her looking at him, Holling imagines she is plotting against him.

The main lesson in "The Wednesday Wars" revolves around the themes of self-discovery, friendship, and personal growth. Holling Hoodhood transforms from an isolated middle schooler to a confident...