Holes - Dark Publications

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Editorial Reviews:

Amazon.com Review
"If you take a bad boy and make him dig a hole every day in the hot sun, it will turn him into a good boy." Such is the reigning philosophy at Camp Green Lake, a juvenile detention facility where there is no lake, and there are no happy campers. In place of what used to be "the largest lake in Texas" is now a dry, flat, sunburned wasteland, pocked with countless identical holes dug by boys improving their character. Stanley Yelnats, of palindromic name and ill-fated pedigree, has landed at Camp Green Lake because it seemed a better option than jail. No matter that his conviction was all a case of mistaken identity, the Yelnats family has become accustomed to a long history of bad luck, thanks to their "no-good-dirty-rotten-pig-stealing-great-great-grandfather!" Despite his innocence, Stanley is quickly enmeshed in the Camp Green Lake routine: rising before dawn to dig a hole five feet deep and five feet in diameter; learning how to get along with the Lord of the Flies-styled pack of boys in Group D; and fearing the warden, who paints her fingernails with rattlesnake venom. But when Stanley realizes that the boys may not just be digging to build character--that in fact the warden is seeking something specific--the plot gets as thick as the irony.

It's a strange story, but strangely compelling and lovely too. Louis Sachar uses poker-faced understatement to create a bizarre but believable landscape--a place where Major Major Major Major of Catch-22 would feel right at home. But while there is humor and absurdity here, there is also a deep understanding of friendship and a searing compassion for society's underdogs. As Stanley unknowingly begins to fulfill his destiny--the dual plots coming together to reveal that fate has big plans in store--we can't help but cheer for the good guys, and all the Yelnats everywhere. (Ages 10 and older) --Brangien Davis

Product Description
Check out the Holes tour with Louis Sachar!
Monday, October 20th, 7:00 p.m. Anderson’s Bookshop, Naperville, IL
Tuesday, October 21st, 7:00 p.m., Barnes & Noble, Skokie, IL
Wednesday, October 22nd, 7:00 p.m., Harry W. Schwartz Bookshop, Brookfield, WI
Thursday, October 23rd, 7:00 p.m., Red Balloon Bookshop, St. Paul, MN
Friday, October 24th, 7:00 p.m. Wayzata Community Church, Wayzata, MN
Monday, October 27th, 7:00 p.m., Tattered Cover Bookstore, Highlands Ranch, CO
Tuesday, October 28th, 7:00 p.m., Borders, Aurora, CO

Stanley Yelnats tries to dig up the truth in this inventive and darkly humorous tale of crime and punishment–and redemption.

Book Description

Stanley Yelnat's family has a history of bad luck, so he isn't too surprised when a miscarriage of justice sends him to a boys' juvenile detention center, Camp Green Lake. There is no lake - it has been dry for over a hundred years - and it's hardly a camp. As punishment, the boys must each dig a hole a day, five feet deep, five feet across, in the hard earth of the dried-up lake bed. The warden claims that this pointless labor builds character, but she is really using the boys to dig for loot buried by the Wild West outlaw Kissin' Kate Barlow. The story of Kissin' Kate, and of a curse put on Stanley's great-great-grandfather by a one-legged gypsy, weaves a narrative puzzle that tangles and untangles, until it becomes clear that the hand of fate has been at work in the lives of the characters - and their forebears - for generations.
With this wonderfully inventive, compelling novel that is both serious and funny, Louis Sachar has written his best book to date.

Customer Reviews: Read 3285 more reviews...

5 out of 5 stars

A Story that has it All August 3, 2000
166 out of 180 found this review helpful

Stanley Yelnats and his family have never had anything but bad luck, so it's not really a surprise to him when he is falsely accused and convicted of theft. Given the choice of jail or Camp Green Lake, Stanley chooses Green Lake because he's never been to camp before. Unfortunately, Camp Green Lake doesn't have a lake and it isn't really a camp. It's a juvenile detention facility. And to build character, the warden, who paints her fingernails with snake venom, has each "camper" dig a hole five feet deep by five feet wide by five feet long every day, even Saturdays and Sundays. What Stanley and the rest of the boys don't know is that the warden isn't just building character, she's looking for the lost buried treasure of outlaw, Kissing Kate Barlow. So begins Holes, a terrific, action filled story, full of great characters with strong voices, exciting, funny scenes and enough twists and turns to keep your kids reading non-stop to the end of the book. Louis Sachar has written a masterpiece full of humor, insight, wisdom and the triumph of the human spirit and he deserves all the awards this book won. A must read for children aged 9 - 12 and a great addition to all home libraries.

5 out of 5 stars

My Opinion of Holes April 3, 2000
43 out of 56 found this review helpful

Holes is a book in which everything is a circle or is the shape of a circle. It is challenging in its own way. It forces the reader to make conclusions by foreshadowing events. The way this book is written shows thought, effort, and many revisions. Using flashbacks to foreshadow events is a brilliant method and definitely worth considering using in your own writing. This book is about a boy named Stanley Yelnats. Notice "Stanley" backwards makes "Yelnats." He is cursed with bad luck, just like the rest of his ancestors. He is accused of a crime he didn't commit, and is forced to go to Camp Green Lake Juvenile Correctional Facility. Here, he must dig a hole 5 ft deep and five ft wide in every direction everyday for 18 months, including Saturdays and Sundays. After much work and toil, he finally leaves Camp Green Lake. This book is very good and is undoubtedly one of the best books I've ever read. I recommend it to people from the age of 12 and up.

5 out of 5 stars

Holes, an adventure for the mind and soul. December 19, 1999
42 out of 49 found this review helpful

Hloes was a great book. Iv'e already read it twice and am reading it agian for a third time in a row. Stanley Yelnats IV (notice that his first name is his last name backwords)has a famly history of bad luck when his no good, dirty, rotten, pig stealing great-great grandfather, Elya Yelnats forgot to carry Madame Zeronie up a montain. This put a curse on his famly for generations to come. Elya's son, Stanley Yelnats I, was robbed near the now dry green lake by kissin Kate Barlow. Stanley's famly would have been rich if it wasn't for this. A man named Trout Walker wanted to find the treasure of Stanley Yelnats I but Kissin Kate Barlow buried it on the dry lake bed. When Stanley Yelnats IV was wrongly accused of stealing Clide Livingston's shows, he was sent to camp greenlake, which was on the dry lake bed. The warden was a decendent of Trout Walker. She made the each of the kids at camp greenlake dig a 5x5 hole every day. She said that it would build charecter but it becomes obvious to Stanley and his freinds later in the book that they are looking for something. I won't tell anymore but I highly recomend this book. If you don't read it then your missing out on a great book full of adventure , exitment, mystery, 2 storys in one. Holes is the best book I've ever read. 233 pages and I finished it in less then a week and I'm a slow reader. It would normally take me almost a month to read a book that is only a liitle over 100 pages long but I just couldn't put this book down, I didn't want it to end! I read it in all of my free time and even during class at school. There is no book better then Holes. Plus, the book is written so well you'll even be able to feel what the charecters are going through!

5 out of 5 stars

Gripping December 9, 1999
33 out of 35 found this review helpful

I initially wanted read Holes to see what all the fuss was about and to determine if I should buy it for some nieces and nephews for the holidays. Well, I read it in one sitting - just couldn't put it down.

The piece is very disturbing at first, demanding and bleak but realistic with a touch of the magic to come. The beginning can be a little hard to get through, almost depressing. But the rewards are ample and well worth the emotional journey.

Stanley Yelnats is an unlikely yet likeable protagonist who's evolution and growth is gradual and encouraging and totally believeable. I can imagine that many young adolescents will really relate to this "outsider". He gives us all hope. Yet for all Stanley's troubles and adventures, Sacher has given him a pair of loving and totally supportive parents. Yes, Stanley is the hero who comes to the rescue, but his parents are not fools and, in the end, do some growing of their own. How refreshing!

I'll not only give this book to various youngsters on my holiday list, but several adults will find it in their stockings as well.

Grab an onion, a canteen of fresh water, put your shovel down and enjoy!

4 out of 5 stars A gem in childrens' literature! December 3, 1999
29 out of 32 found this review helpful

Never judge a book by its cover. It was hard for me to look at Holes by Louis Sachar without wondering how the illustrious author of Sideways Stories from Wayside School and There's a Boy in the Girls Bathroom managed to procure both a Newbery Medal and a National Book Award. I expected Holes to be yet another tale of juvenile delinquency and final redemption. I was however, pleasantly surprised at the depth of this book. I soon found myself caught up in the well-constructed

plot, and finished it within twenty-four hours. Although I realized that what I was reading was definitely `pleasure reading', I enjoyed piecing together the events in my mind and near the end of the book I was able to triumphantly say, "Ah-hah!" Even though most events fell together, I did not in the least appreciate the last chapter in which the author instructs the readers to `fill in the holes' on their own. It led me to believe that the author himself couldn't think of anything to tie events together and therefore, he simply thought of an eloquent way to tell us to use our imaginations. All things considered, Holes was an excellent book and I enjoyed it very much. Louis Sachar definitely made a contribution to children's literature in the writing of Holes and deserves the honors he received for it.

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