Customer Reviews

Holes (Newbery Medal Book)

5 star:		(2,507)
4 star:		(681)
3 star:		(153)
2 star:		(36)
1 star:		(50)

 

 

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.

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!

As an elementary school librarian, I have been disappointed with many of the recent Newbery Medal winning books, mainly because it seemed like adults were selecting books that they thought young people SHOULD read. Many recent Newbery winning books just sit on our shelves.Therefore, when I added "Holes" to our collection, simply because it had received the medal, I expected to see yet another title collecting dust. To my surprise, this book has been constantly checked out since we received it, and young people, especially boys, are always talking about this book.As some of the other reviews have suggested, this book is a bit quirky, but some of the mysterious features of the story propel the reader forward and Sachar does a nice job of filling in the holes by the time you reach the end.Stanley and "Zero" are two boys down on their luck, who become friends in a terrible place. As fate would have it, the misfortunes that brought them together turn out to be interrelated."Holes" is another new book that gets young people to read, much like the Harry Potter phenomenon. Not only that, it gets them to think and talk about what they've been reading. Based on that, this book is recommended.

Holes is an excellent book.
It is suspenseful, interesting,and not one chapter
is even the slightest bit boring.
You will find that you will want to read this book
multiple times.
Louis Sachar has done an amazing job with Holes.
I hope that my review convinces you to read this
wonderful award winning book.
Thank You

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.

As a member of several book groups from time to time members recommend reads from the world of children's literature and young adult titles. In the past few years I have read and loved The Giver by Lois Lowry, Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson, Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt and The Princess Diaries by Meg Cabot. When I learned that a movie based on Holes bu Louis Sachar, starring Sigourney Weaver, Jon Voight and Henry Winkler was in the production stage, I decided to read this well loved book first. And once again reading this book confirmed for me that a really great read can be found in a genre we may feel is for a younger audience.

While on the surface Holes tells a rather simple story of how an ancient curse affects a present day tale, this book touches on more profound themes which will keep any reader turning the pages quickly. Chief among the themes is loyalty, independence, siolation, segregation, evil vs. good and above all else, love. Told with humor and compassion, this book takes its rightful place among other wonderful titles and in my opinion is destined to become a classic in years to come.

Stanley Yelnats is a young man sent to the Green Lake Detention Camp for Boys after he is accused of stealing a pair of snearker from a famous basketball player at an auction. Stanley's mother urges Stanley to look upon this event as an opportunity to have fun since he's never been to a camp. But as Stanley will soon learn, Green Lake Camp is neither green land, a lake nor an ordinary camp. It is instead a camp where a group of young boys are at a facility overseen by The Warden, a woman, and Mr. Sir. All that Stanley and the others are told they must do is dig holes of a specified size under a broiling sun and report on what they find as they dig. What is never explained to them, though, is why they are digging these holes and what they are supposed to find. We as readers, though, learn about a curse from long ago, what the boys are really looking for and a woman bandit and the man she loved and lost. But most of all we learn how Stanley's family heritage in a tale from long ago and how it brought him to Green Lake.

Considered a book for young adults, the author Louis Sachar presents two paralell stories which had me gulping down the pages. Not only do I recommend this book to younger teenage readers but also to adults who enjoy a bit of humor and poignancy. This is a one of a kind book and I look forward to rereading it again and again.

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!

I loved reading Holes. In class we have to do a book report almost every month. I'm really glad I chose the book Holes. Some of the things you read in the story you don't think is important, but at the end everything just ties together. Stanley Yelanst gets wrongly acused of stealing a pair of shoes. He has to go to a youth prison camp. Everyday you have to dig a hole 5 feet deep and five feet wide. Sachar does a wonderful job of writing. My mom read this book before I did and liked it just as much. I would recomend this book to anyone from the ages of 8- to adult. A great book for anyone. I have no trouble seeing why this book won the Newberry Medal of Honor. I love Holes.

Have you ever been at the wrong place at the wrong time? Well 13 year old Stanley Yelnats is probably the most unlucky boy in the world,he is an overweight,poor,social outcast and he can blame it all on his "no good-dirty-wrotten- pig- stealing -great- great- grandfather" who broke a promise to a one legged gypsy, and therefore doomed his family to a lifetime of misfortune. Stanley continues this streak of misfortune when he is sent to Camp Green Lake, a camp for juvenille delinquents located in Texas, for a crime that he did not commit. At Camp Green Lake the boys are forced to dig holes 5 feet from every angle, every day in the blazing hot sun. The purpose for these holes is to "build character", but Stanley begins to realize that there is a more important reason for these holes, someone is looking for something and Stanley is determined to find out what. At Camp Green Lake Stanley makes friends with an illiterate but extremley intelligent orphan named Zero. Together they will uncover the secret behind the holes, Camp Green Lake and maybe even change Stanley and Zero's luck forever. I really enjoyed reading this entertaining book because it kept me in constant suspense, and really allowed me to enjoy the characters I was reading about. I would reccomend this book to people of all ages because depending on age this story will be able to provide different levels of understanding, but there is no denying that everyone will enjoy and understand the great story.

Stanley Yelnats was given a choice in the story Holes. The judge said, "You may go to jail or you may go to Camp Green Lake." This pretty much says it all. Stanley was from a poor family and had never been to camp before, so he chose camp. When Stanley goes to Camp Green Lake, he discovers that every day each boy, each inmate, must dig a hole five feet wide, by five feet long and by five feet in depth. Why? I don't get why they needed to do that. Stanley makes a friend, Zero. He was nicknamed that because this is exactly what the world finds him to be. These boys take you on a real adventure which I will not tell you. They run into everything from the pig,the lullaby, the onions and even the sneakers. Holes is full of mystery, suspense, action and a lot of humor mixed in. You should read this book. Louis Sachar has a very interesting way of writing a realistic tall tale. He makes you want to find out what happens next. The ending is as exciting as the trip through the story.