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Holes

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Introduction: Holes is a young adult novel written by Louis Sachar. It was written in 1988. It is written in the typical adventure and mystery genre. The story revolves around Stanley Yelnats, a boy who was sent to a correctional facility or camp, ‘Camp Green Lake,’ after being wrongfully accused. Sachar’s writing style is very gripping, which makes the book an ideal choice for young adults and other readers. A key theme in this book is friendship between the boys at the camp, and how it led to many discoveries later on as well. Summary: Stanley, whose family has extremely bad luck due to his family’s curse, is sent to a correction camp to build character after being wrongfully accused of stealing the shoes of a famous person, though he did not do it. There, he is forced to dig holes every day, searching for something they don't even know if it's there or not. When Stanley was still young, his grandfather, Elya Yelnats, had gotten a pig from Madam Zeroni in exchange for a promise that he would carry her up a mountain and sing her a song. He was always chasing a girl he believed he loved, but after not getting her, he hopped on a boat to America and left. Once in America, he married and had a son. He knew that Madam Zeroni’s son also lived there, but he never found him, and from that moment onwards, he believed that he was cursed since he could not fulfil his promise to Madam Zeroni. Around 100 years before Stanley arrived at Camp Green Lake, it was a beautiful lake, with actual water, instead of the dried-up land it is now. In that town, a schoolteacher, Katherine Barlow, falls in love with Sam, who is a local onion seller. They kiss, but Sam is killed due to being black and kissing a white woman. Charles, or Trout, as he had smelly feet, always liked Katherine, but now, finding out that not only did Katherine not like him back, but liked a black man, he ordered for the school to be burned down and for Sam to be attacked. Katherine desperately sought help from the police, or in this case, the sheriff, but the sheriff, who had lewd intentions towards her, also wanted to kill Sam. They tried to escape on a boat, but their boat was ambushed, and Sam was killed. Kate, who was driven mad by the death of her lover, became an outlaw and was named Kissin’ Kate Barlow, as she kissed the men she killed. She had also robbed Stanley's grandfather and buried his money and treasure somewhere; however, though she was captured and tortured for information, she died before anyone could find out. After Sam's unfair death, the lake dried up as if refusing the actions of the townspeople. Stanley finds a lipstick tube with KB engraved on it, which he finds out stands for Kate Barlow. After that, he begins investigating that area, thinking it might be where Kate Barlow lived. Later on, he becomes good friends with a boy named Zero, and later finds out that Zero was the great-great-great-grandson of Madame Zeroni. Later, Zero tries to escape this facility, and Stanley strangely follows him after a few days. They manage to climb up a big mountain, where they find Sam’s old onion field. Zero was very weak, so Stanley carried him up the mountain. Once there, they survive on onions for a week, then they return to camp to search for more of Kate Barlow’s things. Together they find a suitcase with “Stanley Yelnats” written on it, and take it; however, the Warden tries to take it from them, but Stanley's lawyer arrives to take Stanley back, as he was proven innocent. Zero and Stanley leave with the suitcase containing many of his grandfather’s valuables. Finally, Stanley’s family curse is lifted, and his father even develops a cure for foot odor later on. Hector, or Zero, and Stanley become best friends. Though the correctional camp seemed like a burden at first, it served to help Stanley and his family in the long run. Critical analysis: The book mainly revolves around themes like fate, racism, friendship etc. The friendship between Zero and Stanley was the key to many of their accomplishments together and outwitting the Warden. The book has also pointed out the racial injustice back in the days, where people were killed just for being black. The rising action of this book was when Stanley finds the lipstick tube labelled with KB on it. From this point onwards, the true story began. The climax was when Stanley helps Zero by carrying him up a mountain, much like what Madam Zeroni wanted Stanley’s grandfather to do, but now that promise was fulfilled by his grandson, and the curse was lifted. After this, they also successfully uncovered Stanley’s grandfather’s treasure, lifting the curse. The falling action was when the drought was eventually healed as it rained in Camp Green Lake. Stanley and Zero were freed and left with the suitcase. A major point, or a moral that this book gives us, is that our future is not determined by our fate, or what we believe it is, at least. It is determined by us, and the hard work we put in for ourselves. Recommendation: In my opinion, Holes is a must-read book. The story is pretty gripping and keeps you entertained, so you actually finish the book and not leave it half-read. It also allows us, as readers, to know more about the protagonist himself, making it different from other books I have read. I would recommend it for ages 13 to 16, but anyone can read it. The language is pretty simple to understand, and the themes are common but they play out perfectly.

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Published on 10/27/2025

Prasiddhi Dangol is a student at Deerwalk Sifal School who loves writing articles, exploring diverse topics, and engaging in creative discussions.

Prasiddhi Dangol

Grade 10

Roll No: 28009

77

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