Hooway for Wodney Wat is a 1999 picture book by Helen Lester. The author has mentioned it as one of her favorites.
Rodney Rat, or "Wodney Wat" as everyone calls him, cannot get a break. His speech impediment makes him the laughingstock of the class and leaves him at the outskirts of social activities. When an intimidating new student, Camilla Capybara, arrives, Wodney thinks things can't get much worse. However, clever use of his impediment winds up as the key to defeating Camilla.
In 2011, the book received a sequel, Wodney Wat's Wobot.
This book includes examples of the following tropes:
- Alliterative Name: Virtually all the named characters in the story (Wodney Wat, Minifeet Mouse, Grizzlefriz Guinea Pig, Camilla Capybara) have matching first names and surnames.
- All of the Other Reindeer: All the rest of the students bully Wodney over his speech impediment, such as by asking him for answers that will reveal his rhotacism. This changes after he gets rid of Camilla.
- Eating Lunch Alone: Everyone makes fun of Wodney, so he is so shy that he eats lunch all by himself.
- Elmuh Fudd Syndwome: The hero of the book, Rodney Rat, cannot pronounce his R's, no matter how hard he tries. Wodney's speech impediment is used to his advantage against a loud and annoying new classmate, Camilla Capybara, to the delight of the west of the class.
- Shrinking Violet: Because he gets bullied so much for his speech impediment, Wodney is the shyest student in the class. When he's selected as "Simon" for the class's favorite game, Simon Says, it takes him most of the game to come out of his jacket and raise his voice to a normal level.
- Speech Impediment: Wodney has one that leaves him unable to pronounce his R's, which everyone makes fun of him for. The opening picture shows him looking at a variety of books about speech, which evidently don't help.
- Too Clever by Half: Camilla brags when she enters the class that she's smarter than any of the other students, and she does manage to answer every question the teacher asks. She even proves herself able to tell directions by the sun. However, she completely fails to account for Rodney's speech impediment or to question why her classmates are doing something different. This leads to her becoming the butt of the joke when she keeps misinterpreting sentences that the rest of the student body can easily translate.
- Trampled Underfoot: Camilla runs over everyone else on her way to the playground.
- You Dirty Rat!: Averted. Wodney Wat is the innocent hero. He gets bullied rather than being a bully.
