♦ Displaying rare knacks for both lively classroom banter and sensitive portrayals of complex dynamics within a close but stressed family, Madden-Lunsford hands 10-year-old Angus Gettlefinger the challenge of convincing his reluctant teacher to allow him to perform a version of Hamlet with a werewolf cast. Why? Because as a classic “play within a play,” it would allow him to act out his own intense feelings while mirroring what he sees his increasingly secretive, angry, drug-and-alcohol abusing teenage brother, Liam, becoming. Meanwhile, money problems force the four Gettlefinger sibs and their frazzled, underemployed parents out of their house and into a one bedroom apartment. The pressure mounts to crisis level when Liam fails to come home after one of his nighttime excursions, but a cathartic whirl of rash acts, straight talk, and, yes, onstage howling does ultimately lead to cautiously optimistic outcomes for Angus and his family. The author closes with resources for teen alcoholics and their concerned family members, but not before delivering a story that is rich in wise insights, comical and emotionally wrenching moments in turn, imaginary dialogues with Lon Chaney and other silent film era stars, and colorful quotes from the Bard drawn in large part from the online Shakespearean Insulter. Who says Hamlet isn’t appropriate fare for elementary-schoolers?
—Booklist, starred review
For his fifth-grade legacy assignment—a class project students create as a sort of departing gift to their school as they ready for sixth grade—Angus has decided to write a play that, as the book’s title suggests, recasts Hamlet with werewolves. Angus has of late been somewhat obsessed with the furry shapeshifters, not just because they’re cool but also because they seem a lot like his oldest brother, whose mood swings and erratic behavior have thrown the family into a tailspin. Liam, however, is no mythological creature—just a regular addict, repeating the cycle of using, promising to get clean, and relapsing in short order. Angus is sure if he could just do something to remind Liam of what he’s missing, the old Liam will show up, but even a play based on their childhood make-believe isn’t going to fix the emotional havoc Liam has caused. This is a painfully accurate depiction of a family in the throes of addiction, and the dynamics will have a gut-punching familiarity to any reader who has watched family members struggle with alcohol and drugs. Angus and his siblings work so hard to not be a bother to their parents and even as they resent Liam for his behavior, they’re desperate to have him back in their lives. The book is wise enough to leave Liam’s addiction vague, without mention of a catalyzing incident and avoiding a pat ending. This is Angus’ story, not Liam’s, and the ultimate success of his werewolf play underscores a valuable message crystalized in the author’s note: sometimes you have to craft your own story even when others around you are destroying theirs.
—The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
Fifth grade is hard, and it’s even harder when you’re convinced your older brother is a werewolf. Angus Gentlefinger, who is white, has always had a flair for the dramatics. Inspired by the historic nature of his LA home, Angus decides that his fifth grade legacy project will be a special production of Hamlet. But things are hectic in the Gentlefinger house. With three siblings and parents who are facing foreclosure on their home, Angus tries to battle the duties of his school assignments and his brother’s ever-growing erratic behavior. Angus is tired of lying for Liam and never knowing which version of his brother he’s going to get; a production of Werewolf Hamlet may be just the way Angus can show Liam how his actions are affecting others. Madden-Lunsford captures the wild imagination of childhood while tackling the hard-hitting subjects of addiction and powerlessness in the face of it. Angus’s imagination allows him to cope with the current struggles of his life, including familial addiction and financial hardship. Readers dealing with these issues will find comfort in the book’s optimistic ending. The dynamic play-inspired formatting, real Shakespeare quotes, and references to classic Hollywood figures are engaging and educational. Idealism and reality blend seamlessly here, and Angus’s journey navigating his brother’s growing addiction issues is powerful and poignant for all. VERDICT An emotional and engaging tale teetering the line between tragedy and comedy; this is a delightful addition to any middle grade collection.
—School Library Journal
A 10-year-old struggles to stop his brother from going “feral” in this sensitive, humorous portrayal of a family in crisis.
Things are falling apart at Angus’s house. He’s organizationally challenged, his parents are having money troubles, and his older brother, Liam, is sneaking out to drink and run wild around Los Angeles. “He used to be funny and normal, but now he snaps and goes bonkers and makes everybody sad or mad,” Angus says. “It’s scary.” But Liam’s behavior also inspires Angus’s fifth grade “legacy” project: he writes and directs a play called Werewolf Hamlet, in which Hamlet turns into a werewolf when he becomes enraged. Angus hopes his brother will make the connection between Hamlet’s unchecked behavior and his own.
Using that same wishfully creative mind to cope with stress, Angus holds imagined conversations with old-time Hollywood stars like Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton, during which everything in his life goes perfectly. But life is not ideal, and even the Shakespearean insults Angus flings at his brother aren’t enough to control or cure him, as he learns when his parents start attending meetings for families dealing with substance-abuse issues.
Kerry Madden-Lunsford (Ernestine’s Milky Way) empathically approaches a family dealing with multiple crises through a lens that may help readers feel less alone in their own struggles. Although some of the characters lack depth, Werewolf Hamlet is thoughtful and clever, well worth a place on the shelf. Bonus: Angus makes Shakespeare sound thrilling and hilarious.
Discover: Werewolf Hamlet is a lively, compassionate, and funny portrayal of a family in crisis and the lengths one 10-year-old will go to “fix and help and maybe even save” his teen brother.
—Shelf Awareness
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