William's Midsummer Dreams

William's Midsummer Dreams

Zilpha Keatley Snyder

Children's Fiction Book

In Snyder's William's Midsummer Dreams, companion to William S. and the Great Escape, William and his three siblings Jancy, Trixie, and Buddy have just escaped their abusive Baggett family to their aunt Fiona's house and legally become Hardisons. In this book, William begins a new life as an 8th grader at Gold Beach High, battling with his scrawniness and awkwardness, and continuing his love of Shakespeare and acting by keeping in contact with his drama teacher at his old school, Miss Scott. With the help of Miss Scott, he is able to go to a Shakespeare Festival at Mannsville College that summer, where he successfully scores and performs the role of Puck in A Midsummer Night's Dream and gains multiple life experiences. After the final show, William is confronted by two of his ex-siblings, who demand money from him. When he refuses, they knock him unconscious, but luckily they are scared away by Sargeant Blanding, a new friend of William's, and Blanding returns William to the safety of his new family.

When I began this book, one of the ones that I picked out from Mrs. Johnson's free collection, I was immediately surprised to see how easily it could be compared to Hollis Woods. Both feature runaway characters who are somewhat orphaned and possess an artistic skill that helps them find release in some way. For Hollis it's drawing, and for William it's acting, particularly Shakespeare. Although the emotional depth associated with this book may be difficult for most elementary--middle schoolers who have never experienced anything similar to escaping an abusive family, I think a lot of young readers will be able to relate to the battle against awkwardness and to make friends that William is struggling with at this point in his life.

Zilpha Keatley Snyder's language is very descriptive and rich: she places a lot of emphasis on the senses and often describes flashbacks that challenge the reader's ability. Snyder weaves theatrical references into everyday matters often throughout the book. For instance, when William goes to the Shakespeare Festival in Mannsville, she describes how he "fools" everyone that he encounters the first day into believing that he is confident and belongs there, when he really is overly self-conscious and it is revealed that he has major self-confidence issues. Instead of naturally becoming more comfortable at the festival with time, he has to create a character who is cool and experienced and nonchalant, and forces himself to act it out until he realizes that he actually does have every right to be there and possesses a lot of talent. As part of her incorporation of Shakespeare and acting into daily life, Snyder also changes the font for any proper nouns related to Shakespeare: from the play's title A Midsummer Night's Dream to his collection The Complete Words of William Shakespeare, to William's middle initial "S."

Something unique that I especially enjoyed and thought set this book apart was William's devotion to his siblings. I know for me, personally, growing up, I was so caught up in my school friends and dance friends and trying to fit in that the time I spent with my little brother often fell to the wayside. But the reality is that I will probably know my brother longer and keep in touch with him more often than any of my friends from growing up, and that time with him should be treasured too. I absolutely love that William puts his siblings first and would do anything for them, and how they prove that they would go out on a limb to protect him too, even if they are younger, smaller, and weaker.