Holes

Rating:
Summary: Nice idea; but a book not quite polished enough.
Review: Stanley Yelnats is sent off to camp where 'digging to build character' is the order of the day. But in reality, things are very different...

This 1998 book is a very readable book, intended for children, written in a straightforward and entertaining manner, probably most suitable for children aged between about nine and fourteen.

The language and plot have been kept nice and simple, to make it readable, and it can be read in about four to six hours. The book contains a lot of original ideas and nice touches, and is, on the whole, well-written for its target readers.

But you can pick a lot of holes in the plot. Improbabilities. Illegalities that probably wouldn't happen in real life. Too many coincidences. A too-simplistic ending that isn't legally correct. But the book's supposed to be a bit of fun, and for kids so does that matter? Maybe, not really. Maybe grown-ups should keep out of the debate.

The book has nice ideas - like the growing child carrying the growing piglet idea, symbolic of training for life; like the 'I'll fix that!' phrase; like the 'you help me out and I'll help you out back' concept. And so on.

This book left me with the impression of a book only half-written. The writer had an excellent idea, plotwise, but he didn't work quite hard enough to finish the article: it had potential to be brilliant, but it was only left as a 'quite good' article. But it's still a book worth reading.

Rating:
Summary: Great
Review: Stanley Yelnats is sent to a camp called Camp Green Lake. 100 years ago there was a lake at Camp Green Lake.But now it is all dried up. Kids that are bad are sent there. Stanley went because he stole a foster home kids shoes.

Everyday now he has to dig a hole 5 feet wide and 5 feet deep in 90 degree weather. They have to dig because supposedly there is a treasure where the lake used to be. Will he find it?

Rating:
Summary: Holes
Review: Stanley Yelnats is sent to Camp Green Lake because he is accused of something which he didn't do. He is sent to Camp Green Lake to dig holes to dig character but later in the book he finds out different. He meets many people at Camp Green Lake. Some of these people are Zero, X-Man, Armpit, Magnet and many more people. Why is Stanley really at Camp Green Lake? Read the book and you will find it out yourself.

Rating:
Summary: This is one of my favourite books.
Review: Stanley Yelnats is sent to Camp Green Lake for a crime he didn't commit. All day long he has to dig pointless holes 5 feet deep and the 5 feet in diameter. But one day Stanley finds something and the Warden gets excited. Is she looking for something?

When I started this book I couldn't put it down. Everyone is connected to one another in some unexpected way. It has heart and soul, romance, reunion and a great ending.

This is a book you shouldn't miss.

Rating:
Summary: A Definite Winner!
Review: Stanley Yelnats is sentenced to a juvenile detention camp for boys for a crime he didn't commit. Since he has never gone away to camp, Camp Greenlake seemed like a much better option than jail. It wasn't until he arrived that he learned Camp Greenlake was just the opposite of green and there wasn't anything close to a lake here. Stanley also learned there was more to Camp Greenlake than most people knew, except for the warden, Mr. Sir.

Holes is a wonderful story on the trials of Stanley, an unlucky boy who is learning that not all things in life are fair, but there is always a bright light at the end. During his days at Camp Greenlake, Stanley becomes friends with the most oddest of characters and in the end realizes that he may not be so unlucky afterall. This strange story has a strong plot that twists and turns its way to the end with a suspensful conclusion. It will draw even the most hesitant of readers into its trance and transport them to the dry, flat, hot surroundings of Camp Greenlake. Winning the 1999 Newberry Award, it really is a wonderful example of excellence in literature.

Rating:
Summary: Simply Brilliant
Review: Stanley Yelnats is suffering. His father is suffering. In fact, everyone in his family has suffered from his cursed "dirty-rotten-pig-stealing-great-grandfather". Currently Stanley Yelnats in at Camp Green Lake a reform camp for boys who have the option of going there or going to jail. A sorry choice for a boy who is found guilty of a crime that he did not commit.

But hey, Camp Green Lake sounds likes a nice place though right? Well, it does sound nice except for it is in the middle of nowhere in the hot blistering sun. The residents each day have to dig a five foot hole five feet in diameter at the bottom. Perhaps this is not so bad in and of itself, except for the rattlesnakes, tarantulas, and the yellow-spotted lizards (they are the only animals whose bite means certain death)... Did I mention that there was no lake at Camp Green Lake anymore?

Sachar brilliantly blends in narrative from the past of Stanley's family with the history of Camp Green Lake in conjunction with present circumstances that makes for a truly captivating read. I would recommend this book to anyone.

Crazy James

Rating:
Summary: What lies in the holes?
Review: Stanley Yelnats is sure that he comes from a family of bad luck when he is convicted of a crime that he didn't commit. He is sent to Camp Green Lake, which is a misnomer because the lake has dried up hundreds of years ago. There is no escaping the camp because there is no civilization, food, or water for miles around. Then, his friend Zero does escape because he can't take being at the camp anymore, and Stanley goes after him, creating additional challenges and adventures. This book was excellent because it shows that when Stanley thought he was in a terrible situation, he was able to make friends, uncover secrets about his family and the camp, and become a much stronger person. I recommend this book to others because it is fiction and fantasy-like, but the story was so realistic that it really seemed like it could happen. The story was very interesting and I was never bored for one second while reading it. Once you pick it up, you can't stop because it is so suspenseful.

Rating:
Summary: a hole lot of fun
Review: Stanley Yelnats is the palindromic hero of "Holes." As punishment for supposedly stealing a pair of sneakers, he is sentenced to a stint at Camp Green Lake (a misnomer if there ever was one). There, in a Dickensian-like conditions under (Roald)Dahlian like keepers, Stanley digs holes daily with the other hapless boys. Soon he comes to realize that he may be digging for reasons that have nothing to do with building character, and everything connected with the curse placed on his family long ago.

With his new friend Zero, Stanley manages to unravel the mystery and revoke the curse. Like Dahl and Dickens, all ends happily with the villains suitably punished. Along the way, the characters learn about the importance of persistence, loyalty to your friends, and how to get rid of foot odor for good.

And the movie is just as terrific.

Rating:
Summary: Stanley and Camp Green Lake
Review: Stanley Yelnats is under a curse. A curse that began with his no good dirty rotten pig stealen great great grandfather. Some people think Stanley stole sweet shoes. Then when he went to Camp Green Lake Mr. sir said its not girl scouts. He stayed in tent D. There he met armpit, Zero, X-ray ,and Mr. Pendancekey. When Stanley was done digging his hole he went to the wreak room to write to his mom. When he was writing to his mom Zero asked if Stanley would teach him to read and write.And Zero would dig a little bit of Stanley hole.

Rating:
Summary: Holes
Review: Stanley Yelnats is under a curse. A curse that began with his no-good-dirty-rotten-pig-stealing-great-great-grandfather and has since followed generations of Yelnats. Stanley gets accused of a crime that he didn't commit and now has a choice of going to Camp Green Lake or to jail. Stanley's family is poor so they decide to send him to Camp Green Lake. But when Stanley arrives there is no lake but boys digging holes exactly five feet deep and five feet wide. The warden says the boys are digging holes to build character but they are really looking for something. But what? Read the book and find out.