Holes

Holes by Louis Sachar is a great book! It is the story how people are connected through generations. That is to say, what happened to Stanley Yelnats's no-good-dirty-rotten-pig-stealing-great-great-grandfather is still affecting the family today.

Stanley was in the wrong place at the wrong time (the story of his life) and was arrested for theft. He is sent to Camp Green Lake, a boys' juvenile detention center. There is no lake at Camp Green Lake - it has been dry for over a hundred years.

The daily chore for boys at this camp is to dig a hole. One hole each day. Five feet deep and five feet wide. The sooner it is done, the more free time the boys have in the afternoon/evening. The warden claims that digging the holes will build character.

This is a humorous tale of crime and punishment and a curse passed down through Stanley's family line. I highly recommend it! It is a well thought out and written tale that weaves the story of many generations together in parallel tales of chance, justice, and decision that will change the course of the Yelnats family.


Sachar, Louis. (1998). Holes. New York: Frances Foster Books.