Reviews

The Labors of Hercules Beal by Gary D. Schmidt

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katiecakes91's review

emotional hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

5.0

Reading this was equivalent to being wrapped in a fluffy blanket still warm from the dryer while also crying. The main character is a middle school boy and the author did SUCH a good job voicing him. Hercules felt like a very real middle school boy. The sense of community and love after the giant loss Hercules has undergone is so touching. I feel like so much of this book can be summed up by this line...

"By the end of his labors, Hercules understood that he had been to hell and back. That meant a lot - that he had come back. Now he had a lot more living to do - and he was grateful beyond anything for that."

bibliobrandie's review

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5.0

Wow, I just loved this book! Seventh grader, Hercules Beal, has to fulfill a year-long assignment (Classical Mythology Application Project) for his new teacher (Lieutenant Colonel Hupfer) - to perform the Twelve Labors of Hercules. Hercules is experiencing grief over the loss of his parents, who died a year earlier in a car accident, and his brother has returned to take care of him and the family business. - I loved the relationship between Hercules and Lieutenant Colonel Hupfer. I loved the relationship between Hercules and his brother, Achilles. This book made me laugh, it made me cry (Achilles waiting for Hercules to come back safely from the dunes each day!). I am a huge Gary Schmidt fan. I love how he helps young people ask big questions.

jenbsbooks's review against another edition

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4.25

This was recommended to me highly by my SIL and I liked this a lot. It would be one I'd recommend to my boys (if they were reading) or for a family listen together. The timing for me was interesting, as this same month I read another YA where the MC's parents had been killed in an accident (Counting by 7s). My next book is also a YA (The Mystwick School of Musicraft ) where the MC's mother died and her dad is is gone. What's up with all these young kids and their parents?

I've always liked mythology, and here, the MC's name is Hercules. His brother is Achilles ... apparently their parents liked mythology too. A school assignment has young Hercules writing up how the famous twelve labors of Hercules might be performed today. The "recognition of the relevance of these Labors, how they connect to your own life." It's a big assignment, but it's a year long one, and all the kids have a big mythological challenge.

The first two chapters of the book introduce the characters and the situation ... I'm who who notes POV and tense. It's all 1st person, very conversational, with Hercules talking to US, the reader. It's mostly past tense, but it slides a little, especially at the start, from present, and even futuristic. That confused me a bit ("this fall, I'm going to the Cape Cod Academy" ... then same chapter "so that's why on the last day of August I walked on my own two feet to the seven o'clock Cape Cod Academy Orientation" and then same chapter delved into the first day of school ... it just seems like it should have all been past tense?)

After those first two chapters, the remaining chapters are the "Labors of Hercules" ... The Nemean Lion, The Hydra, The Hind, The Boar of Erymanthus, The Augean Stables, The Birds of Stymphalus, The Cretan Bull, The Mares of Diomedes, The Belt of Hippolyta, The Cattle of Geryon, The Golden Apples of the Hesperides, Cerberus. I feel like I have a decent background in mythology, but I wasn't that familiar with ALL twelve labors (certain ones are more memorable, have been addressed more in other books/movies, etc). It was really interesting how the author (and Hercules) came up with present day correlations.

I was attached to the characters ... like several other books, it has a group of people coming together, helping, growing. There were times I was hit emotionally.

Listening to the audio, it was very obvious how often "said" was said ... he said, she said, he said, she said. 1083 times in a 350 page book. It was grating at times. I'm not sure of the time setting, I think it was contemporary, but it seemed like 12-year old Hercules and friends were in a lot of situations that weren't the average daily activities for a 7th grader.

mrselizabethv's review

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

jtlars7's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

Very good novel for older elementary/young adults. Deals with some tough themes, but it’s ultimately hopeful. Schmidt likes to include tie-ins to other books he has authored, and here we get to meet grown-up versions of Danny Hupfer and Mai Thi from The Wednesday Wars. (Fans of that book who skipped Just Like That won’t be able to avoid the bad news that starts that book here either.)