Holes

Title: Holes
Author: Lois Sachar
Publisher: Random House Children’s Books
Copyright: 1998 by Lois Sachar
Pages: 233
Ages: 9-12
Genre: Fiction

Summary:
Stanley Yelnats is very unlucky. He’s so unlucky, he even thinks he’s cursed. All because of his no-good-dirty-rotten-pig-stealing-great-great-grandfather. He is accused of Stealing Clyde “Sweet Feet” Livingston’s shoes and is sent to Camp Green Lake where there is no lake, and where he and the other boys there have to dig holes everyday. Everyday, 5 feet wide and five feet deep. It is sweltering hot all day long and into the night. Each of the boys has a nickname and never go by the names they were given at birth. There is Zig Zag, X-Ray, Armpit, and Zero are in Stanley’s group. The boys ask Stanley what he did in order to get in there. And when he tells them what he is accused of, none of them believe him. Stanley finds this interesting because when he told the adults he didn’t do it, they didn’t believe him and when he told the boys he did, they didn’t believe him either.
Stanley’s great-great-grandfather was named Elya Yelnats and when he was young he fell in love with an empty headed girl. Elya was friends with a gypsy woman named Madame Zeroni. She promised him that if he carried a pig to the top of the mountain to drink from the spring, and then carried her and sang a lullaby, he would marry the beautiful girl. However he doesn’t keep his promise and Madame Zeroni curses him. His entire family suffers from then on.
As Stanley digs, he becomes stronger and is able to dig faster. But he is still one of the slowest diggers. However, one day he finds something and is going to report it, but then X-ray convinces him to give it to him. X-ray gets the day off and the boys are ordered to dig in the area near X-ray’s hole. The Warden is looking for something.
One day, Stanley is found with Mr. Sir’s sunflower seeds and admits to taking them even though he didn’t. He is taken to the Warden where she threatens him with her rattlesnake venom nail polish. She scratches Mr. Sir, and sends Stanley on his way. When Stanley returns to his hole, it was dug for him.
Because Stanley is the slowest digger, Zero makes a deal with him. If Stanley will teach him to read, Zero will dig half of his hole for him. Stanley agrees and begins to teach Zero. They become fast friends. During a thunderstorm (where they receive no rain) Stanley see’s what he thinks is “God’s Thumb” where his great-great-grandfather was supposed to carry Madame Zeroni.
Because of Mr. Sir’s injury, he treats Stanley badly. He won’t refill his water canteen at all and is mean to him. This happens for a long time, but Zero helps him dig his hole. Stanley continues to teach Zero until one day Stanley gets into a fight with the other boys and when Zero tries to save him, Mr. Pendanski fires his pistol into the air and then the other counselors come running. They find out that Stanley has been teaching Zero to read and they both get into trouble. The counselors make fun of Zero. He runs away, without any water and the counselors destroy his records.
A new boy named Twitch arrives who is there for stealing cars. When their canteens are getting refilled, Stanley steals the water truck with the help of Twitch but crashes it into a hole. Stanley runs. He didn’t even fill up his water bottle. He walks and walks and walks but can’t find Zero. He finally comes upon a sunflower seed bag with one seed stuck to it. It becomes his lunch. He takes the bag and continues on his way. He finds Zero under an old boat. Where they drink some Sploosh and are able to survive awhile longer. Stanley decides that since Zero refuses to return to camp, they should head to God’s Thumb. On the way Zero gets really sick and Stanley has to carry him up the mountain. Once there, they find water and onions and are able to eat and drink.
Stanley comes up with a plan. He wants to go back to camp and dig one last hole. He wants to find what the Warden has been looking for, so they return. They dig in the hole that Stanley found something in. They dig until they find a suitcase but unfortunately the Warden, Mr. Sir, and Mr. Pendanski catch them. Stanley and Zero are left in a hole with some poisonous lizards until morning when Stanley’s attorney comes to take him home. They safely leave the hole and Stanley and Zero are both able to leave because they had destroyed Zero’s information.
The suitcase contains jewels and other manner of money and the boys split it. Zero finds his mother and Stanley’s family’s bad luck is broken. And best of all Camp Green Lake was closed.

Recommendations:
I love this book and would recommend it to everyone.

Potential Problems:
There is some violence and degrading behavior. Zero is made fun of throughout the book. The girl that Elya Yelnats wants to marry is beautiful, and not very bright. Possibly inferring that beautiful women can’t be smart. An Afican American man is hung because he kisses a white woman.

My Reaction:
I love this book. The way the three stories intertwine is flawless. This is one of the few books that I’ve read that I can almost believe that I am there. It is an amazing piece of work.