Mr. Hoodhood in The Wednesday Wars by
Gary Schmidt, is not a very appealing or sympathetic character. He is Holling's father
and is not a very supportive man—much more interested in his own life and concerns than
those of his son, he isn't much of a father to Holling, especially while Holling is in
junior high which is a tough time for any kid.
There are
several examples that support this assessment of Mr. Hoodhood. First, Holling's dad says
he will take his son to an autograph signing by Mickey Mantle at the Baker Sporting
Emporium; this happens to be the same night that Holling plays Ariel in local
Shakespeare Company Holiday Extravaganza's presentation of Shakespeare's The
Tempest.
While preparing for the performance,
instead of encouraging his son...
...his father tells him to wear [the embarrassing
costume] to please Mr. Goldman, who might one day need an
architect...
In addition,
Holling's dad (and mother) does not attend the performance in support of his son.
Instead, he stay home to watch the Bing Crosby Christmas special on the television—but
at least Holling's friends come to watch. When the play is over, his father is not there
to take him to meet Mickey Mantle as promised. Holling runs to the emporium, only to
have Mantle tell him to get lost because he is wearing tights, and Mantle won't sign
anything for a boy in tights. Had Holling's father been there, the experience would have
been decidedly different.
When Holling and Meryl Lee plan a
date, and Holling doesn't have the money to take Meryl Lee out for "dinner and a show,"
instead of contributing, Mr. Hoodhood laughs, saying that if
he gets the contract for building the new junior high (instead of
Meryl Lee's dad), Meryl Lee's father's business may well go under (or be
destroyed).
Although being a good father
should be his most important concern, Mr. Hoodhood is more
interested in his business and himself than his son.
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