Random House - 1998
Reading Level: 9+ Number of Pages: 233 Genre: Fiction
Newberry Medal Award Winner
Winner of the National Book Award
Winner of the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award
ALA Best Book for Young Adults
ALA Notable Book
ALA Quick Pick
Christopher Award for Juvenile Fiction
A New York Times Book Review Notable Children's Book of the Year
Horn Book Fanfare
Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year
A Bulletin Blue Ribbon
School Library Journal Best Book of the Year
Summary: Stanley Yelnats has been sent away to a correctional facility at a place called Green Lake, a desert in the middle of Texas where his sentence is to dig a hole--five feet wide, five feet deep--every day until his sentence is up. Stanley never has been very lucky, and neither has his family. The origin of his family's bad luck was probably an old family curse, and his ancestors history seems to continue to come back and play a major role in his trials in the desert. After his friend Zero walks off into the desert, Stanley goes after him, managing to survive only by finding an oasis on the top of a mountain and subsisting on patches of onions. When he returns to the camp he re-excavates a hole where he had earlier found a suitcase filled with treasure, and is discovered by the wardens of the camp. He would have been taken, but evil-looking lizards fill the hole, emerging from where the suitcase was. The lizards were poisonous and bloodthirsty, but didn't eat Zero or Stanley because of all the onions they had eaten. Stanley and Zero manage to leave the camp, and it closes. The wardens of the camp were descendants of people who lived in a town on the location, and were searching for a lost treasure on the spot. They never manage to get that which they and their ancestors had tried to forcibly take.
"He dug his shovel into the dirt.
After a while he'd lost track of the days of the week, and how many holes he'd dug. It all seemed like one big hole, and it would take a year and a half to dig it. He guessed he'd lost at least five pounds. He figured that in a year and a half he'd be either in great physical condition, or else dead."
My Impressions: My first experience with Holes was the movie adaptation. The book rendition is definitely as good or better than the film. The book was significant not only because it tells a compelling story, but because it addresses racial conflict, as well as interracial love and friendship, and is also unique because of a rather cruel female villain. I found the story to be interesting and unique, and I feel like people should easily be able to identify with Stanley, and he grows significantly in the story.
Parent's Guide: The wardens in the story are cruel to the boys who are working at the camp, and the description of digging the holes is quite vivid. The book also portrays some racial tension, although that which is expressed is shown in flashbacks to a past time, so would be in historical context. The book makes a point that the boys at the camp are not offended by race.
Recommendations: Holes surprised me a bit; and I was glad to read it. I might suggest that everyone should read this book. If you don't believe me, check out how many awards this book has received. ^^
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