Scan barcode
whitneymouse's review
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
I am FLOORED this was nominated by so many professionals for a literary award that celebrates the “best of Children’s Literature.”
The writing is mid at best. It’s repetitive (something his teacher calls him out for and he never fixes). If I saw “you wouldn’t believe x. You really wouldn’t believe it…you just wouldn’t believe it.” I get it 🙄 same with millimillionth.
But the worst part is that this child, whose parents apparently LOVED Greek myth SO MUCH that they named their children Hercules and Achilles, somehow doesn’t know anything about the myths he was named after and that his parents love so much. So here’s the short version:
Hercules murders his first wife, Megara, and their children. To atone for this, he’s told by the Oracle of Delphi he needs to do 10 years as a slave to King Eurystheus, who gives him labors to do and also two rules for those labors. Rule 1: you can’t get paid and rule 2: you can’t get help. Why? Because he’s ATONING FOR MURDER! He breaks both rules anyway and that’s why he does 12 labors instead of 10.
Got it? Good. Then you’re one step ahead of this character, who tries to pass it off as “Hercules was sad his family died and omg, isn’t Eurystheus so mean for yelling when he gets help from his nephew, Iolaus? I don’t think it’s too much to ask your family for help!” Well, it is when you’re atoning for murder and you know that’s one of the TWO rules you need to keep. His version of most of the labors was so inane and it drove me nuts. Also, like his namesake, he doesn’t even do like half of his labors. At one point, he acknowledges that his situation is nothing like the labor he’s supposed to be doing & we’re supposed to just accept that?
Additionally, losing your parents in a tragic accident is in no way the same situation as murdering your entire family and having to try and atone for it. And he’s learned NOTHING about Hercules the myth (as he’s called) because he ends the book with “well, he did other things until he became a god” and his take away is that Hercules was kind of a jerk and he had to “try and do better”. Except he IMMEDIATELY kills Iphitus and has to go back to the Oracle and do more enslavement, so he is not “trying to do better.” It’s maddening. And kids today read a LOT of Greek mythology. Better retellings of those myths, too. I’m sure more than one child will be frustrated by how poorly Hercules (and by extension, Schmidt) understands his source material.
So overall, no, I wouldn’t recommend this. It was a Herculean feat to finish. And I’m beyond words professionals wanted this book to be nominated for a Newbery. Kids deserve better.
The writing is mid at best. It’s repetitive (something his teacher calls him out for and he never fixes). If I saw “you wouldn’t believe x. You really wouldn’t believe it…you just wouldn’t believe it.” I get it 🙄 same with millimillionth.
But the worst part is that this child, whose parents apparently LOVED Greek myth SO MUCH that they named their children Hercules and Achilles, somehow doesn’t know anything about the myths he was named after and that his parents love so much. So here’s the short version:
Hercules murders his first wife, Megara, and their children. To atone for this, he’s told by the Oracle of Delphi he needs to do 10 years as a slave to King Eurystheus, who gives him labors to do and also two rules for those labors. Rule 1: you can’t get paid and rule 2: you can’t get help. Why? Because he’s ATONING FOR MURDER! He breaks both rules anyway and that’s why he does 12 labors instead of 10.
Got it? Good. Then you’re one step ahead of this character, who tries to pass it off as “Hercules was sad his family died and omg, isn’t Eurystheus so mean for yelling when he gets help from his nephew, Iolaus? I don’t think it’s too much to ask your family for help!” Well, it is when you’re atoning for murder and you know that’s one of the TWO rules you need to keep. His version of most of the labors was so inane and it drove me nuts. Also, like his namesake, he doesn’t even do like half of his labors. At one point, he acknowledges that his situation is nothing like the labor he’s supposed to be doing & we’re supposed to just accept that?
Additionally, losing your parents in a tragic accident is in no way the same situation as murdering your entire family and having to try and atone for it. And he’s learned NOTHING about Hercules the myth (as he’s called) because he ends the book with “well, he did other things until he became a god” and his take away is that Hercules was kind of a jerk and he had to “try and do better”. Except he IMMEDIATELY kills Iphitus and has to go back to the Oracle and do more enslavement, so he is not “trying to do better.” It’s maddening. And kids today read a LOT of Greek mythology. Better retellings of those myths, too. I’m sure more than one child will be frustrated by how poorly Hercules (and by extension, Schmidt) understands his source material.
So overall, no, I wouldn’t recommend this. It was a Herculean feat to finish. And I’m beyond words professionals wanted this book to be nominated for a Newbery. Kids deserve better.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Car accident, Animal cruelty, Grief, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Murder
There's also repeated floodings/near drownings
More...