In Gary D. Schmidt’s THE LABORS OF HERCULES BEAL (Clarion, 352 pp., $19.99, ages 8 to 12), the title character, a seventh grader at the Cape Cod Academy of Environmental Sciences, is singled out ...

The Labors of Hercules Beal Gary D. Schmidt. Clarion, $19.99 (352p) ISBN 978-0-358659-63-1 ...

The stories of the 12 Labors of Hercules are as riveting today as they were in ancient Greece. Intrigued? Read on to learn about the trials and tribulations of the Greek hero Hercules.

I had never previously been on a "tactical military flight", before I found myself stepping up the rear ramp of a Hercules aircraft en route to Kabul. The passengers sat in rows facing each other.