“Holes” by Louis Sachar

Grade Level: 4-5 | AR Points: 7.0

Holes - Louis Sachar

This is a story of young Stanley Yelnats, a meek young boy from a very unlucky family.  The family’s bad luck goes back to a curse upon his “no-good-dirty-rotten-pig-stealing great-great-grandfather.”  The bad luck manifestes itself with  Stanley being wrongfully convicted of stealing a pair of shoes belonging to a famous basketball player.  The judge does not believe him when he tells him the shoes fell from the sky and gives him the choice between jail and Camp Green Lake.  Of course, not knowing about Camp Green Lake, Stanley chooses camp because his poor family has never been able to send him to camp.

However, Camp Green Lake is not a summer camp, there is no lake, and there’s nothing green in sight.  The Warden makes her charges dig holes to “build character”, but Stanley soon figures out that she is looking for some type of treasure and they are the labor.  Mr. Sir and Mr. Pendanski oversee the boys to make sure they dig a five foot hole every day.  Stanley befriends a young, quiet boy named Zero and agrees to teach him how to read.

Stanley learns the history of Green Lake, how a teacher became known as the legendary outlaw Kissin’ Kate Barlow, sweet onions, and how his own family history fits in.  Louis Sachar brings all the elements of this story together so well, it has enthralled both kids and adults.

This book was made into a movie, and even if you’ve seen the movie, you need to read this book.  Most of the time, movies don’t closely follow the book, but this is one of the exceptions.  However, there are some differences you can find between the book and the movie.

I highly recommend this book.

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