In The Labors of Hercules Beal by Gary D. Schmidt, Hercules Beal has a lot on his shoulders, everything from family tragedy to a new school. He and his brother Achilles live on their own in the family home on Cape Cod - complete with New England fall color (some of it orchestrated with Autumn Yellow).

Hercules transfers to a new school, Cape Cod Academy for Environmental Science. He luckily comes under the tutelage of Lieutenant Colonel Daniel Hupfer, a tough former Marine and a teacher who definitely presents challenging lessons. Lieutenant Colonel Hupfer assigns a year long Classical Mythology Application Project. Hercules is, of course, assigned the Twelve Labors of Hercules and how they might be performed with relevance to our main character's life. The labors are presented in separate chapters, each ending with the reflection/written assignment and Hupfer's comments and grade.

The characters are engaging and full of the zest one finds in novels by Schmidt. Who won't remember Viola the Vampire, Lt. Col Hupfer, Pirate Cat or Mr. Moby?

There are lessons to be learned here. Some are through the eyes of a child, those of a marine or even our own. We see the importance of resilience, community support, courage and the understanding that family can be more than the commonality of DNA.

Thanks to Clarion Books, Gary D. Schmidt and NetGalley for this ARC.

Outstanding - Highly recommended for library collections

This is another wonderful, heartrending, heartwarming, happy, sad, funny book by Gary D. Schmidt!!

It is the tale of middle-school-aged Hercules Beal. He and his older brother, Achilles, were named after mythical heroes by their parents. Unfortunately, these beloved parents have recently been killed in an auto accident. That leaves the two brothers to take care of themselves, which means running the family landscaping and plant nursery business. It also leaves them each grieving heavily for their parents.

As Hercules begins attending a new school, his ex-Marine teacher, Lieutenant Colonel Hupfer, assigns his home room class a year-long mythology project, Hercules’ task being to perform the Twelve Labors of Hercules and present a year-end report. Therein begins Hercules’ journey of learning to do difficult tasks, but also finding out that they need not be done alone. He begins to understand how to deal with his grief and sadness through the love and caring of others. With the help of Lieutenant Colonel Hupfer (who isn’t always very helpful!) and many friends and neighbors, Hercules has a very eventful and adventurous year.

Though this book could be sad, it is not (though there are a couple of places that could make you cry!). It is fast moving and in true Gary D. Schmidt style will make you laugh out loud at times.

This one is great for any age. Get it as soon as you can!

I’d like to thank NetGalley, Gary D. Schmidt, and HarperCollins Children’s Books for the advanced reader's copy in exchange for my unbiased review.

On the surface, the only thing Hercules Beal seems to have in common with the mythical Ancient Greek hero is his name. That is until his new Language Arts teacher, Lieutenant Colonel Hupfer, assigns him to complete the twelve Labors of the mythical Hercules. Then, Hercules Beal sets out to survive a new school, help his brother keep their farm and nursery running, and fight real-life problems that echo the challenges of the past. Along the way, Hercules learns valuable lessons and comes to rely on and appreciate the community that helps him overcome the struggles he faces.

Gary D. Schmidt’s The Labors of Hercules Beal is a memorable, witty middle grades novel. The Labors of Hercules serve as effective plot device to highlight how overcoming life’s challenges takes heroism and courage. As Hercules faces his twelve extraordinary labors in a single year, Schmidt demonstrates learning from the past can help navigate present challenges. There’s also a current of realism reflecting that sometimes when it rains, it pours, and such is the year Hercules must face. Through it all, the novels’ characters steal the show. From Hercules to Achilles to Viola to Mr. Moby and Lieutenant Colonel Hupfer, each is well-developed and memorable. In the end, The Labors of Hercules Beal is emotionally powerful, and readers will root for its hero until the very end.

For educators looking to teach Ancient Greek myths alongside a novel, The Labors of Hercules Beal provides the perfect opportunity to do so. The inclusion of the mythical Hercules’ twelve labors narrows the focus in a way that allows teachers to make deep, meaningful connections between the past and Hercules’ present-day problems. For educators looking for a narrative to highlight change and growth in characters, The Labors of Hercules Beal also provides the perfect vehicle. No matter its educational uses, middle grade readers will enjoy Hercules Beal’s heroic journey and learn plenty of lessons along the way.


Thank you to NetGalley and publisher, Clarion Books, for an eARC of this book.

4.75/5

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

This was such a wonderful book - it took me a while to get through it just because I was in my own reading slump, but even then I adored what I was reading. Each labor was really well done (and sure, a bit unrealistic for him to do them in such a short period of time but I think we can suspend our disbelief here!) and had some cool interpretations for how they could be done in a modern setting. This book also had a lot of genuine heart. We get to see Hercules deal with his grief, guilt, and anger, and the cast of characters around him are a joy to read.

The only thing I will criticize is that I felt like the final chapter/labor was very rushed and I wish it wasn’t quite so dramatic. However, I still loved this book; it was such a beautiful coming of age.

The Labors of Hercules Beal by Gary D. Schmidt tells the story of sixth grader Hercules who has been recently enrolled in the Cape Cod Academy for Environmental Sciences. Under the guidance of his humanities teacher Lieutenant Colonel Hupfer, Hercules has been assigned a year-long project to perform modern versions of the twelve Labors of Hercules.

Each chapter in the book focuses on Hercules and the lessons he learns as he completes each labor. For example, it’s probably not the best idea to spray paint a tree gold if you are attending a school that focuses on saving the environment. The journal entries and responses at the end of each chapter between Hercules and Lieutenant Colonel Hupfer will make readers smile (word counts at the end of each paragraph) and eventually warm your heart as you read the encouragement from a teacher who is helping a student find his way back after a tragedy.

The most important lesson in this book for students, as well as adults, is that you don’t have to face your problems alone and that it is okay to ask for help. This message is very much needed and should be repeated to our students on a daily basis.

Highly recommended for upper to middle grade students and would be an excellent read aloud.

THE LABORS OF HERCULES BEAL is Gary Schmidt at his best—although I'm not sure he's ever NOT at his best. Hercules and his brother run a Garden and Nursery Center. He's got good friends and a good dog and a teacher who's kicking his butt—but who is pretty darn good too. In this cleverly (smartly, perfectly) structured story, Hercules navigates life after a tragedy and, through a series of adventures, he begins to learn how to make life go on. Small emotional details make your heart ache. Other small bits of dialogue make you laugh out loud. All of the story comes together and just rings hopeful and true.

The obvious question to start out with here is, How on earth is everything Gary D. Schmidt writes so good? I realize I’m basically a Schmidt fan girl at this point, and will jump to read anything he writes with an alacrity lacking in most areas of my life. You could either take that as a warning: maybe I’m a little biased here—or as an endorsement: you, too, should become obsessed with any writing that is this good. Let’s go with the latter.

Hercules Beal is starting out a new school year, at a new school, with a new teacher (Lieutenant Colonel Hupfer, who is just as strict as that sounds). His parents recently died in a car crash, and he and his adult brother are trying to manage to keep up the old family business of the Beal Brothers Nursery and Garden Center in Truro, Massachusetts, the most beautiful place on earth, according to Hercules. As you can imagine, that’s plenty difficult—so when Lieutenant Colonel Hupfer assigns him a project to study and re-enact the labors of Hercules in his actual life, it’s, well, a Herculean task that will require all his ingenuity, friendship, and heart to achieve.

If you’re thinking that the structure of this story is gimmicky—eh, it is. But I DON’T CARE. Because it WORKS. I’ve come to think that the magic element to the really great writing in the world is that its authors know when to follow rules and when to break them. Gary D. Schmidt breaks a few with abandon in his newest book, but does so with confidence and aplomb. The result is a book that is a pleasure to fall into, because you know you are in the hands of a master.

Like most of Schmidt’s books, this is chock full of interesting characters, particularly Hercules’s teachers and neighbors in Truro, and his brother’s girlfriend, Viola, who “is obviously a vampire.” Again, like much of this author’s work, The Labors of Hercules Beal could be given out as a handbook for how to become a good human being. It’s going right to the top of my “Books My Son Must Read Before Becoming a Man” shelf (next to Pay Attention, Carter Jones, incidentally).

This gem comes out May 23, so go ahead and pre-order it now.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with an electronic copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All gushing opinions are my own.

I’m looking forward to introducing this book to both students and teachers. I read the entire thing in a snowy Saturday, under a quilt, and it warmed me all over. This is one I want to read again.

This author’s “Wednesday Wars” came out shortly before I began selling children’s books and was one of the first in that section of the store that I read. I loved it! Schmidt never disappoints and he hasn’t here. He is always able to tell a good, compelling story with children and adults that, while not perfect, seem real. Kids you come to love and who go through some things to learn important life lessons with the help of caring (frequently teachers) adults. Characters that you could imagine meeting, in a story you can’t wait to share.
Hercules & his older brother Achilles begin running the family garden center on Cape Cod after their parents die. Then as the next school year begins, he must transfer to a closer school where Hercules’ English class is given a yearlong assignment picked by their teacher specifically for each student. Hercules’ is for him to take the Labors of Hercules of mythology and write how it pertains to his life over that school year.
I could not put it down.

This was beautiful.
Beautifully redemptive.
Theme: Why we need books and community.
Recommend.

“We get better,” she said. “It takes a long time and there’s a whole lot of scars, but we get better.”

Thank you to NetGalley for the chance to preview this book.

Gary Schmidt's books are my comfort reads- there are quite a few extremely hard things for the main character to deal with but underneath you can always see hope and kindness. This book was no different. I was honestly a little afraid that it was going to be too similar to Schmidt's other ones, but it turned out to have its own wonderful message. There were a few places where the plot felt a bit loose (some characters seemingly disappeared for extended stretches of time, and one dramatic plot element occurred just too many times to be really plausible). However, the rest of the book more than makes up for these few shortcomings. I read it all in one sitting and cried multiple times.

One thing I really loved was that the teacher turned out to be Danny Hupfer from 'The Wednesday Wars'- I always appreciate when Schmidt puts in easter eggs from his other books. And I was even more excited when his wife's name is revealed- I love how that side plot from the original book got wrapped up.

Overall, I'd definitely recommend this book- and all of the other 'Wednesday War' books too.

Gary Schmidt does it again! What a heartfelt book. It is just so well written and entertaining. The main character, Hercules, has experienced the loss of both his parents, and in part feels guilty for their deaths. When his brother makes him start at a new school, his new English teacher assigns a rather unique project after reading Greek myths. Hercules must replicate the 12 labors of Hercules in his own life. Throughout these 12 labors, Hercules realizes that he is not alone and that he has many adults in his life that will take care of him and support him. I laughed out loud and even cried, sometimes on the same page. I have not read The Wednesday Wars, but I love that there are some characters who cross over. Gary Schmidt is an excellent writer.

Hercules Beal has suffered a great deal for such a young kid and he doesn't always know how to process it. As he enters a new school with a tough, retired military teacher, he is required to take on a months-long writing assignment imitating the Greek myth of the labors of Hercules. Oh boy.

I know very little about Greek mythology. If I knew more maybe I would have enjoyed this book a tiny bit more. Maybe not. The feats attributed to this child are not rooted in any sort of reality. I understand that he learned to lean on his community of family and friends, but the story was one labor of unreality after another. If he had learned these lessons over a lifetime I would have enjoyed the story more, but I could not suspend believe long enough to believe a child could be far more wiser than all the adults (a common trope of children's and middle grade fiction that I dislike) in just a matter of months.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I love Gary Schmidt's books always and this one, to me, was stronger than the previous offering. While some of the labors were a little 'pat' with how easily they paralleled his life, I spent a lovely couple of hours wandering with Hercules through his labors and his journey.

A wonderfully amusing and heart-warming story! 7th grader Herc Beal, the smallest kid in his class, has to complete a language arts assignment in which he applies the mythical Twelve Labors of Hercules to his own life. The setting (Cape Cod), the character, and Schmidt's repetitive and descriptive writing combine to make this a beautiful read.

Hercules Beal is a unique 12 year old. He cherishes the sunrise, he plays Cribbage with his friend, and he appreciates a good casserole or pot pie. His parents recently passed away in a car crash and he and his older brother are figuring things out on their own. Poor Hercules Beal goes through a lot in this story, but comes out a changed boy.

The structure of this book kept things interesting. Each chapter was about a different labor and how that labor came through in Hercules Beal’s life. The reflections at the end of each chapter were a nice capstone for each event. It was a fun way to read about a year in Hercules Beal's life.

I was surprised every time a cell phone was mentioned because the book felt very much set in the 70s or 80s. The ways the kids spent their time, and the way the community interacted with each other had a small-town feel. Adult readers may feel nostalgic for the good ole days, but younger readers might feel disconnected from the story.

I laughed, I teared up, and I learned a bit about Greek Mythology.

I’ll definitely purchase this book for my classroom library.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins for Children's Books for this digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book was great! There was so much emotion and I loved how we got to see the character learn and grow!

Let me start with this: The Wednesday Wars is awesome. I taught it for years, and it remains one of my all time favorite books. And clearly Gary Schmidt thinks so too, as he just keeps revisiting it. But instead of just constantly retelling the same story from another character’s perspective (ahem, Wonder), he’s given each of the main crew the chance to have their own story - Doug in Okay for Now, Meryl Lee in Just Like That, and now we meet adult Danny (aka Lieutenant Colonel Hupfer). And the other great thing about all of these books is that although they feature a character from Wednesday Wars, each one stands on its own.

Gary Schmidt’s books do have a particular formula - tweenaged protagonist, gruff teacher with a heart of gold, new friendships, and a sweet tweenage romance. This one is no different, although in a bit of a twist we’re not following Danny’s story, but the story of Hercules Beal. Danny himself is the gruff teacher with a heart of gold, and he’s perhaps channeling Mrs. Baker.

Hercules lives on Cape Cod with his brother Achilles. About a year ago, their parents died in a car accident, leaving the boys all alone (and meaning Achilles had to come back from his life as a globetrotting travel writer to run Beal Brothers Nursery and Greenhouse). They get along about as well as you’d expect, but luckily Herc has his dog Mindy, and Pirate Cat to keep him company. Much to Herc’s dismay, Achilles enrolls him in a new school for his 6th grade year: the Cape Cod Academy for Environmental Sciences. There, along with his Future Friend Henry and sometimes nemesis Ty, we meet Lieutenant Colonel Hupfer. He hasn’t had friends since the 7th grade, he’s seen some stuff, and he doesn’t care if you like his class or not. Thinking everyone needs grounding in the classics, he gives every student in his homeroom a personalized, yearlong assignment. Hercules must reenact the twelve labors of his namesake - perform, do, make, happen, execute, accomplish. Once he starts the labors, each chapter ends with his required reflection…and a note from his teacher. I liked seeing these progress along the way, and again - he’s totally channeling Mrs. Baker with some of these comments and it made me smile.

As expected, Hercules has adventures and hardships and learns important lessons along the way. All of Gary Schmidt’s books are sort of rooted in tragedy (none more than Orbiting Jupiter), but he also has a way of making you laugh. I was a little bothered at the beginning, because Hercules sounds enough like Holling Hoodhood to be distracting. He even repeats “I swear I am not making this up”, although he says “oh boy oh boy” instead of Holling’s preferred, sarcastic “Terrific.” But at one point, Danny points out that Herc reminds him of Holling, so perhaps that’s by design. Or maybe Schmidt’s characters just all sort of sound the same.

I liked Herc, and Mindy the dog, and Pirate Cat, and all the rest, but I confess I was mostly here because of Danny Hupfer. It’s interesting that Schmidt chose to include him in this way, while Doug and Meryl’s stories basically pick up where Wednesday Wars leaves off. We get a bit about Danny’s background, but this is very much Hercules’s story. I think I may have liked it better if Danny’s appearance had been more like Lil’s brief cameo in Pay Attention, Carter Jones. If you love Wednesday Wars as much as I do, you just want the story to be about him, which gives Herc and the gang short shrift, because they’re pretty cool too.

But that’s really a minor quibble. I laughed, I cried, I loved it.

This is a beautiful book about Hercules, a 6th grader who, with the help of a militant but kind-hearted teacher, learns how to process the grief, guilt, and fear he has over the death of his parents by making connections with his life to the impossible labors of Hercules, the myth. The relationships and characters are well defined. Although this is a novel that covers some very serious topics and is sad, it also made me laugh.

Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins Children’s Books for this digital arc in exchange for my honest review which is not affiliated with any brand.

The Labors of Hercules Beal is Gary D. Schmidt's latest book. It is about Hercules, a boy who has lost his parents and is attending a new school. His homeroom teacher gives each student a personalized assignment. His task is to replicate the feats of Hercules, the mythical legend. Hercules isn't sure how to replicate and write about these, but he does. In the process, he learns about who he is and what is important to him. This book was a great read. The characters were some of my favorite. They came to life as the story was told. The plot was solid and moved at a good pace. I can't wait to share this with my students.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.