Herbert's Homework

Herbert

by Hazel Wilson

Herbert is now in the 7th grade and this book centers around Herbert's adventures as he faces class with a demanding new teacher. Miss Bateman can be kind, but expects good work from him. Herbert tries to slack off through his various schemes and varies between As and Fs through the school year. He ends up with a little better understanding of why his teacher was pushing him.

150 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1960

About the author

Hazel Hutchins Wilson was born on April 8, 1898 in Portland, Maine. She earned her B.A. from Bates College and a B.S. from Simmons College, Boston, Massachusetts. Ms. Wilson was a professional librarian at the high school and college level and a lecturer at George Washington University, Washington, D.C. She was the author of over 15 children's books. Her most famous books are the Herbert series, which was based upon the actions of her son and his friends.

Reviews

[Mir · Rating 4 out of 5]

7th grade seems to have so much more homework than 6th grade! Herbert goes to great length to get out of doing his -- usually involving more effort than it would have been to study in the first place. He also gets into various escapades, sometimes due to his own unwise ideas (inventing high-speed electric roller skates) and sometimes at random (who was that stranger at the feed store with the "special oats"? Guess we'll never find out!).

Although there are some fantastical elements, the kids are mostly depicted in a realistic way. Herbert is an okay guy, although probably not one I would have been friends with: slightly above average but not interested in thinking or working, likes sports and animals and eating. His friends are similar, although not much fleshed out. I liked that he and his nemesis teacher Miss Bateman were both depicted in a positive light, but not excessively so.

As to the fantastical elements, I can't help but think that the couple of apparently "magical" episodes felt out of place, especially since they're never explained at all (I don't just mean the mechanism; they seem to simply happen to/for Herbert out of the blue, and he doesn't question this, which made him a bit dull to me). I think it would be better to have stuck with the technological gags like the electronic brain (a proto-computer encyclopedia type device that answers questions).

Earlier trouble from which Herbert was rescued by his uncle, who in this book is away in the Middle East, was alluded to. I may have a look for that book.

[Michael Kelleher · Rating 2 out of 5]

To be fair, I only read the first chapter before I gave up on this book. I'm reading a bunch of children's books for my classroom but this one won't go in there.

It may get better but in just the first few pages the main character came across as self-centered, even for a child. The dialogue is written poorly as well. Some of the wording may be a sign of the time it was written, but that's not much of an excuse.

Again, I only read the first 10 pages, but the protagonist immediately rubbed me the wrong way, so I put it down and will not be bringing it into my classroom.