Title: Holes
Author: Louis Sachar
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Number of pages: 233
Type of Book: Middle Grade, Fairytale, Folktale, Adventure, Mystery.
Age: 10+
Buy it here: https://www.amazon.com/Holes-Louis-Sachar/dp/0440414806/ref=pd_sbs_1?pd_rd_w=T5aro&pf_rd_p=965b754e-4670-4322-863d-d4929773ec49&pf_rd_r=KGQV70T7HK8VM5JYXH37&pd_rd_r=17b1b8b7-2dcc-45ab-8e21-fe1cfd2bfdb0&pd_rd_wg=HdnfV&pd_rd_i=0440414806&psc=1 and @thebookwormcafeng on Instagram.
Price: $ 8.49 or N3000
MY SUMMARY
Stanley Yelnats and all his family members have bad luck, it is so bad that Stanley ends up in a juvenile detention centre in the middle of the desert for a crime he didn’t commit. At Camp Green, he must dig holes every day under the hot sun: back-breaking and totally boring stuff until he finds a tube of lipstick in one of his holes and then he goes after a runaway. Then, the adventure begins. The author goes back and forth between three stories: Stanley’s story, a fairytale and a folktale, spinning a thrilling, humorous and powerful story about friendship, crime and punishment.
THUMBS UP AND DOWN
UP: I enjoyed this book as a reader and a writer! The reader in me LOVED the parallel stories; one contemporary, one fairy tale and one folk tale, each with its own fair share of excitement, adventure and suspense. The deadly yellow-spotted lizard, “Kissing Kate” the outlaw, the search for the treasure, and the warden (this woman slapped someone with a snake’s venom) were some of the highlights of the book. This book is a must read for children and adults alike!!
For Ugo, the writer, the highlight was the parallel structure and how all three stories tied up neatly in the end. Just wondering how they were connected and trying to figure it out added to the mystery of the book. Sachar is a wonderful writer with the power to thrill with words. The blend of fairy tale, fantasy, adventure, mystery, humour, folktale and realism in on package is mind-blowing. It is a great mentor text for parallel narratives.
DOWN: Nada …
RATING
🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟
HAVE FUN WITH THIS BOOK
- Read an excerpt here: https://www.npr.org/books/titles/204896601/holes
CHALLENGE: Holes
CREATE (WRITE a Story/Poem OR DRAW)
- Write a 1,000-word story with 2 parallel stories.
Send your answers to ugochinyelu.anidi@gmail.com.
Entry requirements: Entrants must be within the 10 – 12 age range. The first correct entry will be announced on this page and will win a copy of this book.
Answers must be submitted before 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, February 7th 2021.
Next Book of the Week:
MEANWHILE BACK AT THE RANCH by Trinka Hakes Noble
U G O . . . .A N I D I 