Holes

Book Cover:   

Book Title: Holes

Book Summary:  Stanley Yelnats is an over sized preteen who is falsely accused of stealing shoes, after he had a really bad day at school.  His family thinks that there is a cruse of bad luck on them because of Stanley’s great great great grand pa.  The judge provides him with the option to choose between jail and Camp Green Lake. Stanley is not well of, and has never been to camp, so his choice is obvious.  How bad can camp be right?  Sit inside all day talking to counselor’s about how you feel, sounds sweet.  Camp Green Lake is unlike any other camp out there, here for your punishment you have to dig holes. No one really knows why they are digging holes just that they are.  Along the way the boys get to have an adventure of a lifetime and maybe Stanley will figure out why his family his cursed and how he might fix the cruse.

APA Reference:

Sachar, L. (1998). Holes. New York, New York: Random House Children's Book.

My Impressions:  What I liked best was the flow there it is a steady roller coaster of a ride and once you start you really can’t get off or put it down. Stanley is not whinny even in the face of grave danger, he remains his calm self with his dry sense of humor, blaming his "no-good-dirty-rotten-pig-stealing-great-great-grandfather" for almost everything this comes as a relief to me. I think, they were my favorite parts as they reminded me of me and my sister creating stories to tell with the puppets that we had. 

Professional Review:

School Library Journal September 1998

Gr 5-8-Stanley Yelnats IV has been wrongly accused of stealing a famous baseball player's valued sneakers and is sent to Camp Green Lake, a juvenile detention home where the boys dig holes, five feet deep by five feet across, in the miserable Texas heat. It's just one more piece of bad luck that's befallen Stanley's family for generations as a result of the infamous curse of Madame Zeroni. Overweight Stanley, his hands bloodied from digging, figures that at the end of his sentence, he'll "...either be in great physical condition or else dead." Overcome by the useless work and his own feelings of futility, fellow inmate Zero runs away into the arid, desolate surroundings and Stanley, acting on impulse, embarks on a risky mission to save him. He unwittingly lays Madame Zeroni's curse to rest, finds buried treasure, survives yellow-spotted lizards, and gains wisdom and inner strength from the quirky turns of fate. In the almost mystical progress of their ascent of the rock edifice known as "Big Thumb," they discover their own invaluable worth and unwavering friendship. Each of the boys is painted as a distinct individual through Sachar's deftly chosen words. The author's ability to knit Stanley and Zero's compelling story in and out of a history of intriguing ancestors is captivating. Stanley's wit, integrity, faith, and wistful innocence will charm readers. A multitude of colorful characters coupled with the skillful braiding of ethnic folklore, American legend, and contemporary issues is a brilliant achievement. There is no question, kids will love Holes.-Alison Follos, North Country School, Lake Placid, NY

Citation:

Follos, A. (1998). Holes. School Library Journal, 44(9), 210. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/211720888?accountid=7113

Library Uses: to make up their own camp song and crazy reason their family is cursed.