I thought the book was confusing and uninteresting. I mean, who would want to read a book about kids digging
holes?
Well, all that changed when I read the entire book two years later(present time). It has now become one of my
favorite books. Louis Sachar has a very creative and beautiful writing style which I enjoyed thoroughly. The book
also had a little mystery and suspense added in which kept the reader’s attention. These are just some of the
reasons in which I enjoyed Holes.
Plot
Standley Yelnats is a boy with some problems. First of all, he’s pretty fat and gets made fun of a lot by his
classmates(and teachers!). Stanley has very little, if any friends, Just to make matters worse, when Standley is
walking home from having a bad day at school, a pair of sneakers’fall out of the sky" onto Stanley’s head. And
those sneakers just happen to be Clyde Livingston?s( a famous baseball player) sneakers which were recently
reported stolen. Unfortunately for Stanley, there is a cop near by, and arrests Stanley. Stanley is convicted
guilty(but he’s really innocent! That’s not fair!), but he has a choice: go to Camp Green Lake or go to jail. Stanley
chooses Camp Green Lake. I mean, who wouldn’t? It’s better than going to jail, right?
Well. Camp Lake isn’t what you’d expect. First of all, there is absolutely no lake all. The lake and town
disappeared over 100 years ago. There’s only two oak trees on the entire lake which are for the Warden only.
The weather is extremely hot. Is there any wildlife or animals? You bet! There are rattlesnakes and scorpions, but
worst of all-the yellow-spotted lizard. If a yellow-spotted lizard just happens to bite you. you will die a slow and
painful death.
Each day, all the juveniles must dig a hole five feet wide and five feet deep. This supposedly’builds character’ for
the kid and will’ make a bad boy into a good boy.’ But Stanley knows that’s not the reason for the digging. After
finding a mysterious gold object with the initials K B carved on the bottom. Stanley knows they’re trying to find
something, not’build character.’ But what is it are they searching for? Will they ever find it? Will anyone ever find
out that Stanley is actually innocent and release him from this horrible place?
Sorry, but I don’t want to give away the entire plot. Let me just tell you that you will be reading a book you will never forget. You will get to experience how hard and painful it is to dig one of these holes. You will get the chance see Stanley build new friendships with some of the other children. But most of all, you will get the chance to read a phenomenal children?s tale.
Did I Like the Writing Style?
Are you kidding!? I loved it! First of all, the writing is very easy to read and not complex or hard to understand at
all. But what I really liked was how the book sort of jumped back and forth in time. One minute you’ll reading
about Stanley digging a hole, and the next minute you’ll be reading about the bank robbin’ outlaw’ Katherine
Barlow(who once lived in Green Lake while it was still a town). I thought this was neat and really kept my
attention. One word of caution. Some of the younger kids reading this book might have some trouble switching
bacj and forth stories(well. not really stories, but you know what I mean!). It might be a little confusing. My
recommendation is to just keep on reading and you? ll finally understand it.
I liked how Mr. Sachar put some mystery and suspense in the book. Throughout the book, you will be wondering
what they are searching/digging for, and if they will ever find it! Bizzare Fact: Here’s something I bet you didn’t
know until now(unless you’ve read the book before:-): Stanley Yelnats has the same spelling if it is spelled
backwards. Try it, I’m not pulling your leg! Anyway, I very much enjoyed the writing style of Louis Sachar.
Wanna Know Some More Info About the Author?
Sure you do!;) Louis Sachar currently lives in Austin, Texas, He enjoys writing(obviously), and is the author of
several well-known children’s books, including: Sideways Stories From Wayside School, The boy Who Lost His
Face, There’s Boy in the Girls’ Bathroom, and of course? Holes! Holes received the Newbery Medal in 1999. If
you would like any more information about Holes or Louis Sachar, just cut’n’ paste the following URL in your
browser: in the story.
austinchronicle.com/issuses/vol18issue26/books.sachar.html
Recommendations/Overall
Recommending this book is easy. I highly recommend it! I think the book was probably originally written for
junior high/elementary students, but I think adults might readability enjoy this book as well. It has a great, unique
writing style which everyone will enjoy. The plot of the story is original and will keep your attention, which is
always a bonus. So would I recommend this book? Do I really need to answer that question?