I also write on dooyoo under the same name. I'm 20 and am currently at Newcastle Uni studying Speech...
I also write on dooyoo under the same name. I'm 20 and am currently at Newcastle Uni studying Speech and Language Sciences! Thanks for all your ratings!!
Member since:17.06.2003
Reviews:150
Members who trust:151
~ The author ~
Louis Sachar was born in New York in 1954. In the 1970s he did a degree in economics at the University of California and while he was there, he decided to do a course on how to become a teacher's aide, it turned out to be his favourite class and led to him writing children's books. He became a full time writer in 1989.He lives in Texas which is where Holes is set.
~ The Plot ~
"Being bitten by a scorpion or even a rattlesnake is not the worst thing that can happen to you. You won't die. Usually. Sometimes a camper will try to be bitten by a scorpion, or even a small rattlesnake. Then he will get to spend a day or two recovering in his tent, instead of having to dig a hole out on the lake. But you don't want to get bitten by a yellow-spotted lizard. That's the worst thing that can happen to you. You will die a slow and painful death. Always." From Holes
Stanley Yelnats's family has a history of bad luck. His bad luck is the fault of his no-good-dirty-rotten-pig-stealing-great-great-grandfather who was cursed by a Gypsy. So Stanley isn't surprised when he gets sent to Camp Green Lake (a boys' juvenile detention centre) for something he didn't do. (Stealing the trainers of the famous athlete Clyde Livingston) There is no lake (it has been dried up for hundreds of years) and it isn't much of a camp. The boys must dig a hole per day, 5 feet deep by five feet wide, in the hard earth of the dried up lakebed. The Warden claims that this labour is character building but the boys must report to her if they dig up anything interesting. The Warden is lying so Stanley must dig up the truth…
~ My opinion ~
I thought this book was excellent. The chapters were short which meant it was really easy to read. It was simple yet the story was tangled together so cleverly. There was two stories intertwined because as well as reading what was going on at Camp Green Lake, every other chapter or so went into the past. This part of the book allowed you to find out about the curse put on Stanley's no-good-dirty-rotten-pig-stealing-great-great-grandfather and also about Kissin' Kate Barlow. The chapters weave a narrative puzzle that leave you wanting to read on, it finally becomes clear that the hand of fate has been has been at work in the lives of the characters - and their forbears - for generations. The characters are very strong. In D-tent with Stanley (his friends call him Caveman) there are Zero, Armpit, X-ray, Zig Zag, Magnet and Squid. Even though I knew the boys had been sent to the camp as punishment I still couldn't help but fell sorry for them when they had to dig holes day in day out under the hot sun. I became particularly fond of Stanley and the fact that the story of great-grandfather is being told along side the modern day one made it more exciting. I also became attached to Zero, Stanley's best friend at the camp. When he runs away it upset me and I wanted to carry on reading to find out what happened to him. It was like slotting a jigsaw puzzle together when reading the book. You just find out one exciting fact about the present when the next chapter is back to the past! The book really did keep me hooked. As I am quite busy I don't have a lot of time for reading (mainly just before I go bed) but I read this in less than a week! This story is a combination of crime, punishment and friendship accompined by clever plot twists and comedy. I thought this book was fantastic and think it is well worth a read. This is the first Louis Sachar book I have read but I will certainly be looking out for some of his other books.
Holes was first published in America in 1998 and first published in the UK in 2000. RRP £5.99 paperback Published by Bloomsbury (www.bloomsbury.com)Thanks for reading! bluejules x
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Advantages: Wonderful, deceptively simple writing style, bags of humour. Disadvantages: For adults? Maybe the neat ending. For children? Absolutely none!
jillmurphy 08.08.2003 (13.08.2003)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Holes - Louis Sachar
Advantages: A real imagination trip!It makes you believe in children's books again. Disadvantages: If you don't like a few subplots in a story then you may get a little confused with 'Holes'.
bubbletown 03.11.2003 (09.11.2003)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful
Review of Holes - Louis Sachar
Advantages: Well written and engaging with excellent characterisation and a good plot Disadvantages: Over too quickly! Abrupt ending which is not altogether satisfying
Spiderkid 24.11.2009 (25.11.2009)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
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