The Wednesday Wars

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Schmidt, Gary D. 2007.WEDNESDAY WARS. New York, NY: Clarion Books. ISBN 978-0547237602

PLOT SUMMARY
Set in 1967 in city of Long Island, America is involved in the Vietnam War and dealing with the death of Martin Luther King Jr. on the home front. During this state of unrest, a boy, Holling Hoodhood is beginning his seventh grad year at school as the only Presbyterian in a school full of students who are either Catholic or Jewish. Due to him being the only one with out a place to go on Wednesday afternoons, Holling is sentenced to spend the day with Mrs. Baker, who he believes hates him and assigns him to study Shakespeare. As the story progress, Mrs. Baker guides Holling through the difficulties and troubles of life and Holling realizes that Mrs Baker genuinely cares for him and isn't as bad as he first thought.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS
Schmidt's coming of age novel while set in a troubling time of war and racial tension is immensely funny and heart-warming. “To ask your sister to be your ally is like asking Nova Scotia to go into battle with you.” and “But toads, beetles, bats. If you can't figure that out for yourself, then a southwest blow on ye and blister you all o'er.” are some of the laugh out loud lines that Schmidt uses to create a compelling plot about a truly transforming year for Holling Hoodhood. Spending time with Mrs. Baker on Wednesday afternoons, Holling Hoodhood, while learning Shakespeare learns life lessons, how to be the person he wants to be and to eventually become the man he supposed to be.

REVIEW EXCERPT
2008 ALA NOTABlE BOOKS FOR CHILDREN AWARD

2007 PUBLISHERS WEEKLY BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR

Starred review by BOOKLIST “ However, Schmidt, whose Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy (2005) was named both a Printz and a Newberry Honor Book, makes the implausible believable and the everyday momentous. Seamlessly, he knits together the story's themes: the cultural uproar of the '60s, the internal uproar of early adolescence, and the timeless wisdom of Shakespeare's words. Holling's unwavering, distinctive voice offers a gentle, hopeful, moving story of a boy who, with the right help, learns to stretch beyond the limitations of his family, his violent times, and his fear, as he leaps into his future with his eyes and his heart wide open.”

CONNECTIONS
Those interested in the culture of America in the 1960s will be drawn to these novel.
Other novels by Gary D. Schmidt and similar to WEDNESDAY WARS:
Schmidt, Gary D. Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy. ISBN 978-0375841699 and
Holm, Jenny L. Penny from Heaven. ISBN 978-0375836893

The Storm in the Barn

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Phelan, Matt. 2009. THE STORM IN THE BARN. Somerville, MA. Candlewick Press. ISBN 9780763636180

PLOT SUMMARY
The story takes place in the sprawling plains of Kansas in 1937 during the Dust Bowl era due to the lack of rain the region and the nation's states of Depression. Jack Clark, a young shy boy on a farm and a human punching bag for a local gang of boys only wants to be helpful and please his father. One day, Jack wonders into a barn and meets a sinister figure who calls himself the Rain King. The Rain King is holding back the rain from the area so that the people will worship him. Jack, gathering courage, stands up to the Rain and in a showdown between the two characters the Rain looses to Jack and is sent back to the heavens. The story conclusion coincides with the end of the drought and Jack's father realizes his son's true potential.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS
Unlike most historical novels, The Storm in the Barn is a graphic novel that draws readers in with it's historical setting, thrilling tale, and very detailed art work. Reluctant readers will be drawn to the story due to the prevalence of more art than words, but even avid readers will be drawn to the fantasy-like story.
Matt Phelan illustrations are immensely telling, at times the depictions seem like a still of movie due to the carefully crafted facial expressions of the characters. Phelan uses muted gray and pastels colors to create the hard times of the 1930s and uses dark more vivid colors in the climax of the novel to heighten the mood. The Rain King's depiction is especially creepy, colored in dark blues and grays he is never seen without a cloak of rain about his figure and obscuring his face. Phelan's illustrations and words come together to create an impressive work of art that readers of any age will desire to read.

REVIEW EXCERPTS
PUBLISHER'S WEEKLY review: “The big novelty here is the Dust Bowl setting, and Phelan's art emphasizes the swirling, billowing clouds of fine grit that obscure even nearby objects. Older readers might have appreciated more text to make up for the lack of visual clarity, but kids will identify with Jack and appreciate his success.”
Starred review in SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURANL: “Children can read this as a work of historical fiction, a piece of folklore, a scary story, a graphic novel, or all four. Written with simple, direct language, it's an almost wordless book: the illustrations' shadowy grays and blurry lines eloquently depict the haze of the dust. A complex but accessible and fascinating book.”

CONNECTIONS
Those that enjoy reading about the Dust Bowl or Depression era will be draw to this novel as well non-readers that will enjoy the graphic novel format.
*Similar titles:Sandler, Martin W. The Dust Bowl Through the Lens: How Photography Revealed and Helped Remedy a National Disaster. ISBN 9780802795472
Stanley, Jerry. Children of the Dust Bowl: The True Story of the School at Weedpatch Camp. ISBN 9780517880944

Hiroshima

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Yep, Laurence. 1995. HIROSHIMA. New York, NY: Scholastic, Inc. ISBN 978-0780761186

PLOT SUMMARY
The story opens on the morning of August 6, 1945 on an otherwise ordinary day in Hiroshima. 12 year Sachi walks her sister to school and Sachi reports to her duty at the Hiroshima castle to assist the Japanese Army. All of a sudden a plan flies over the city of Hiroshima and panic ensues until it passes out of view. The citizens began to think the worst is over, but then the Enola Gay flies over and drops the first atomic bomb in history. The city of Hiroshima is destroyed and over 125,000 people lose their lives instantly. Sachi survives the initial attack and later on in life speaks to other about her experience. Along with Sachi's experience, information about WWII and facts regarding the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki are woven together in this historical novel.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS
Yep's novella about the bombing of Hiroshima is descriptive and sometimes lacks feeling due to the attention paid to detail instead of to character's emotions. Although lacking in character development the reader will be intrigued by the details regarding the aftermath of the bombing as well as Sachi's trip to America for surgery. Also, Yep's words to describe the pilot’s feelings after the bomb, “What have we done?” are moving and the pilot's words will remain with reader long afterward. Yep concludes the novella by adding additional information about the world's reaction to the bomb and the end of World War II. Readers will definitely be drawn to learn more about the Hiroshima and the devastating effects of the atomic bomb.

REVIEW EXCERPTS
PUBLISHER'S WEEKLY review: “Yep's account of the bombing of Hiroshima and its devastating aftermath is at once chilling and searing, hushed and thundering. Within a factual framework, the author sets the fictional story of a girl named Sachi, allegedly a composite of several young residents of the bombed city.”
SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL review: “Yep ends with two chapters on the destructive potential of nuclear warfare and on some of the efforts being made toward disarmament. His words are powerful and compelling, and the facts he presents make readers realize the horrors of that day and its impact beyond. As a fictional character, Sachi never becomes much more than a name, but even so, readers will be moved by her tale.”

CONNECTIONS
Readers that are interested in WWII era will enjoy this novella.
*Similar titles regarding the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and WWII include:
Takayuki, Ishii. ONE THOUSAND PAPER CRANES. ISBN 978-0440228431 and
Morimoto, June. MY HIROSHIMA. ISBN 978-0670831814