Holes by Louis Sachar: The Movie
 

Has anyone ever read this book? I know that I never did, but it is on its way to becoming a movie starring your favorite Stevens and mine: LOUIS BKA Shia LeBeouf. I saw the preview of the movie when I saw Bringing Down the House.

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/04...CMZZZZZZZ_.jpg

Amazon.com
"If you take a bad boy and make him dig a hole every day in the hot sun, it will turn him into a good boy." Such is the reigning philosophy at Camp Green Lake, a juvenile detention facility where there is no lake, and there are no happy campers. In place of what used to be "the largest lake in Texas" is now a dry, flat, sunburned wasteland, pocked with countless identical holes dug by boys improving their character. Stanley Yelnats, of palindromic name and ill-fated pedigree, has landed at Camp Green Lake because it seemed a better option than jail. No matter that his conviction was all a case of mistaken identity, the Yelnats family has become accustomed to a long history of bad luck, thanks to their "no-good-dirty-rotten-pig-stealing-great-great-grandfather!" Despite his innocence, Stanley is quickly enmeshed in the Camp Green Lake routine: rising before dawn to dig a hole five feet deep and five feet in diameter; learning how to get along with the Lord of the Flies-styled pack of boys in Group D; and fearing the warden, who paints her fingernails with rattlesnake venom. But when Stanley realizes that the boys may not just be digging to build character--that in fact the warden is seeking something specific--the plot gets as thick as the irony.
It's a strange story, but strangely compelling and lovely too. Louis Sachar uses poker-faced understatement to create a bizarre but believable landscape--a place where Major Major Major Major of Catch-22 would feel right at home. But while there is humor and absurdity here, there is also a deep understanding of friendship and a searing compassion for society's underdogs. As Stanley unknowingly begins to fulfill his destiny--the dual plots coming together to reveal that fate has big plans in store--we can't help but cheer for the good guys, and all the Yelnats everywhere. (Ages 10 and older) --Brangien Davis --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.


Movie Trailer:
http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hv&id...railer&intl=us

I saw the preview too & wasn't all that intrigued. But the book sounds interesting. Anyone read it? Would you recommend it?

i've read it twice. it's at about a 4th grade level.

it's a book that you either hate or love...there's no in between. people, mainly educators, are very divided on it.

for me, i didn't like it. i thought it was good up until the end, which i didn't like. i definitely won't pay money to see the movie but i guess i'd watch it when it comes out on video.

My two older sons have read and really enjoyed the book. It's been required reading in many 4th/5th grade classes around here. It's definitely a book that parents should be aware of, especially since it's such a departure from Sachar's "Sideways School" books. Much deeper and touches on a lot of serious things. We heard a lot of questions and "I can't believe..." comments while they read the book.

Definitely worth the read, especially these days.

Christin

hmmmmmmm the previews intrigued me and I ordered the book tonight from the library. Can't wait to READ it. :D

Will let you know what I thought. I never read it before.

We read that book in a class I took last summer. It was well written but extremely strange!

My younger brother had to read the book for school a couple of years ago. I think it's the only book that he's actually enjoyed reading. I didn't get a chance to read it myself, though.

I loved that book! :D
But then again, I come from "Latvian stock" like Stanley Yelnats' grandfather....LOL

I read it last year and LOVED it. I had to read it for a class project, a book file, and out of the 10 kid level chapter books I read it was one of my favorites. I remember making a fun activity for the book too...

looks cute. I haven't read the book but the preview looks fun. I baby sit some kids who live nearby - maybe I'll take them to the movie some night. I think their mother would approve of that rather than Identity, which is the movie I most want to see right now. :) Too scary for kids, I'm sure.

I just finished the book, 2 THUMBS UP!! I am sooooooo happy for Zero and Stanley.

Now I cannot wait to see the movie.

I just came back from the movies, where I saw the preview for this movie. I borrowed the book from my little brother this past winter break, after being assured that "it's a really good book!" It was such a great story that I read it from cover to cover in one sitting. I think I'll take my bro to see the movie. Everyone can use a little easy reading and a kid movie once in a while!

I really like the book and read it again when I saw the trailer. It looks fun for sure--check out this:

http://i.imdb.com/Photos/Ss/0311289/th-12_5620.jpg

For anyone who has read the book that is just one of my favorite parts- I can just see Mr. Sir running after the water truck!! I am totally excited to get to see it actually played out.

The movie comes out this FRIDAY. :cool:

I know. I can't wait. It will be really fun to see!!

loved this book
 

I totally loved this book when it came out.. my younger cousin read it and made me read it. When I saw the preview I was like "I'm definitely going to see this!" I think it'll be super cute.

Book was very good...but I'll probably wait for the movie as a video release or on cable.

so anyone going to see it this weekend


or Malibu's Most Wanted

Its pretty easy choice for me- Holes all the way. I think Jamie Kennedy is super annoying!!

I'll be in line!
 

I didn't see this thread until today, but want to say: I LOVE THIS BOOK!! I actually listened to it unabridged on tape after I knew it was being filmed. What a complete treat. I can't wait to see it, and can't think of a better Warden than Sigourney Weaver.

I had to read the book for my Kiddie Lit class in college...it was a good read, I enjoyed reading it. When I first heard about the movie coming out, I thought I would just wait until it came out on video. Well, wouldn't you know, I was hanging out with other "young adults" from my church and we decided to go see the movie.

I HIGHLY recommend this movie to everyone!!! It was so fun to see how they translated the book into the screenplay, and I especially enjoyed the "Diggin Up" 'rap' at the beginning of the movie and through the credits. It's such a catchy tune...it makes me want to go out and buy the soundtrack! :)

i just love Shia. . .so it doesn't matter if the movie is bad. . .just so long as it follows the book. . .

From what I remember of reading the book, the movie follows it pretty closely.

Sorry, didn't see the post until today, but oh MY I love this book. I led a book discussion on it with a group of seventh graders back when it first won the Newbery Award in 1999. There's something magical about this book. I don't know what it is, but on more than one occasion, kids have come to me in the library saying, "I hate to read, but I loved Holes." Louis Sachar's other works are great, too, like the Wayside School books, but no one, I think, ever expected him to turn out a work so serious, and so incredibly appealing.

Sachar wrote the screenplay for the movie, too, which is the only reason I went to go see it. It does an excellent job of following the book, though of course there's just no way to capture all of the book's subtleties onscreen. Did you all see that he's in the movie? He's one of the citizens talking to Sam, with the onions? Love that.

just cruising Amazon and came across the Holes sequel
 

Title: Small Steps released 1.10.06

Summary From School Library Journal
Grade 5-8–This sequel to Holes (Farrar, 1998) focuses on Armpit, an African-American former resident of Tent D at Camp Green Lake. It's two years after his release, and the 16-year-old is still digging holes, although now getting paid for it, working for a landscaper in his hometown of Austin, TX. He's trying to turn his life around, knowing that everyone expects the worst of him and that he must take small steps to keep moving forward. When X-Ray, his friend and fellow former detainee at the juvenile detention center, comes up with a get-rich-quick scheme involving scalping tickets to a concert by teenage pop star Kaira DeLeon, Armpit fronts X-Ray the money. He takes his best friend and neighbor, Ginny, a 10-year-old with cerebral palsy, to the concert and ends up meeting Kaira, getting romantically involved, and finally becoming a hero by saving her life when her stepfather tries to kill her and frame him. Small Steps has a completely different tone than Holes. It lacks the bizarre landscape, the magical realism, the tall-tale quality, and the heavy irony. Yet, there is still much humor, social commentary, and a great deal of poignancy. Armpit's relationship with Ginny, the first person to care for him, look up to him, and give his life meaning, is a compassionate one. Like Holes, Small Steps is a story of redemption, of the triumph of the human spirit, of self-sacrifice, and of doing the right thing. Sachar is a master storyteller who creates memorable characters.–Connie Tyrrell Burns, Mahoney Middle School, South Portland, ME
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.