HOLES

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Sachar, Louis. 1998. HOLES. Read by Kerry Beyer. New York: Random House. ISBN: 0-8072-8162-X Reading level: age 10 to up

PLOT SUMMARY

As Stanley stated in the book, “I’m not exactly the luckiest guy in the world.” Stanley and his family have always suffered from bad luck, and now it was the curse from his great-great-grandfather. One day, with the false accusation of stealing the shoes of Clyde "Sweetfeet" Livingston, Stanley is sent to ‘Camp Green Lake,’ a juvenile detention camp. It has no lake or greenery, and the evil Warden, who is the camp director, makes the boys "build character" by digging holes five feet wide and five feet deep. One day, Stanley found a golden lipstick tube with the initials, K.B. on it, and he thought the Warden was looking for something about ‘Kissing Kate Barlow.’ Stanley learns that his great-grand father’s money was stolen by Katherine Barlow who buried the money somewhere in the camp. The Warden was trying to find the money, forcing the boys in Camp Green Lake to dig holes every day. Stanley and his friend, Zero started to search for the treasure secretly. One day, they found a suitcase in the hole they were digging. The Warden saw this and tried to take the suitcase from them. Then, Stanley’s lawyer arrived at the camp to inform that Stanley was innocent of the shoes stealing, and free to go to home. Also, he can have the suitcase because his name ‘Stanley Yelnats’ was on the suitcase.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

An example of contemporary realistic fiction, Holes won several awards including the Newbery Medal in 1999, the National Book Award, and the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award. As Dr.Vardell mentioned in her lecture note, contemporary realistic fiction novels contain events that could really happen. Holes set in the Camp Green Lake which is a boy's juvenile detention center in Texas, but, episodes with courage, friendship are very familiar theme to young readers. The unabridged cassette version has three tapes and plays for 4 hours and 30 minutes. The book is read by Kerry Beyer who is a writer, actor, and director. He used different voices for each character, the pronunciation is very clear, but the speed of his reading is somewhat fast. The jacket has book summary and information about the author and narrator.

REVIEW EXCERPTS

Publishers Weekly (May 15, 2000)

PW's starred review of the 1999 Newbery Medal winner described it as a "dazzling blend of social commentary, tall tale and magic realism." Ages 10-up. (May) Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.

School Library Journal (September 1, 1999)

Gr 4-7-Stanley Yelnats is an unusual hero-dogged by bad luck stemming from an ancient family curse, overweight, and unlikely to stick up for himself when challenged by the class bully. Perpetually in the wrong place at the wrong time, Stanley is unfairly sentenced to months of detention at Camp Green Lake (a gross misnomer if ever there was one!) where he's forced to dig one hole in the rock-hard desert soil every day. The hole must be exactly five feet in diameter, the distance from the tip of his shovel to the top of the wooden handle. Each boy is compelled to dig until his hole is completed, no matter how long it takes. According to the warden the digging "builds character." Stanley soon begins to question why the warden is so interested in anything "special" the boys find. How Stanley rescues his friend Zero, who really stole Sweet Feet's tennis shoes, what the warden is desperately looking for, and how the Yelnats curse is broken all blend magically together in a unique coming of age story leavened with a healthy dose of humor. Kerry Beyer's narration of Louis Sachar's Newbery Award-winning novel (FS&G, 1998) brings each of the characters vividly to life, and his pensive portrayal of Stanley brings out all that's most appealing about this unlucky loser who becomes a winner by the story's end. A first purchase for all public library collections.-Cindy Lombardo, Orrville Public Library, OH Copyright 1999 Cahners Business Information.

CONNECTIONS

*Author Website

http://www.louissachar.com/

*Book Quiz
http://www.mce.k12tn.net/reading39/holes.htm
http://www.kidsreads.com/wordscrambles/word-holes.asp

*Activities
-Have children select their favorite part of the books and summarize that.
-Have children select one theme in the book and research of that.
+Juvenile Justice and Detention
+Texas
+Friendship
+Courage
-The name Stanley Yelnats is a palindrome. Have children find other examples of palindrome.
-Have children watch the film of Holes and compare the two.