Analysis

I finally finished my book. As I foresaw in my first entry this book changed my mind. I don't think anymore that the book homeworks are boring. This book is absolutely the most riveting book that I have ever read as an assignment. Although there are unkown words in the book, I was able to guess them from context easily. For example I didn't know the meaning of ''cereal'',but I easily understood that it's some kind of classic breakfast food. The most tasteful thing for breakfast is Cornflakes for me and when I searched the word in google images I wasn't suprised that it means my favorite breakfast food. Although the cereal in Camp Green Lake couldn't be as tasteful as my cereal,I felt happy for Stanley.

Let's talk about Louis Sachar. I think our author knows how to play with words. I can't say he's an expert like Shakespeare but he doesn't make unneccessary descriptions and this property makes the book pithy. The method that he used in the last parts of the book is really creative. There's a chapter in the past and there is a chapter in the present time .It made my reading enjoyable.


Basicly this book has common themes such as friendship, justice, destiny, love and treasure hunt. I can find several books,which includes those themes but I think Holes could be in the top 5 due to its entraining manner of telling the story.






There's one particular thing that I don't like about the novel. I think Louis Sachar is too optimistic and it affects his writing. Everybody likes happy endings but if you make every good person happy and every bad one sad in the end. It's silly. Our kind hearted writer believes that '' The good always prevails'' and he expresses it quite successfuly but he's not one hundred percent successful at making us believe in his idea ,because there's too many miracles. Finding the sploosh and onions, escaping deadly lizards, the invention of Stanley's father and the perfect timing are miracles. If he could have expressed his idea in a more realistic way,he could have made me believe in his optimistic of view. But being realistic about this idea is imposible since we can never say ''always''. Sometimes the good wins and sometimes the evil does...


W: 385

No Happy Ending ( Development / Prediction )

Guys, I'm a dreamer. Clearly it affects my reading style. I like to imagine what comes after from a part of the book. I make my own fantasy world with the characters of the book and make them play the way I like. I usually do it in the most exciting part of the book. There comes Hole's ;

 Stanley and Zero were runaways but they come back to the camp for a last hole. They waited untill darkness and started to dig to find the treasure of Kate Barlow. They reached a metal suitcase and at the same time a flashlight bobbed up. The evil team ; The Warden, Mr Sir and Mr Pendanski were there. Unfortunately it wasn't the worst thing that could happen. The bad luck didn't stop following them. A lot of lizards were on and around them.

Here comes my guess;

 If I were the author, it wouldn'te be a happy end Disney like story. This is how I would have written the rest of the story. When the two unlucky guys saw the deadly animals, their blood froze and they couldn't move. The lizards seemed like they were enjoying playing with their food. The three evil ones were waiting for kids' death in a hair rasing silence. The boys stared up to them with a pupy look in their faces, as they were waiting for a miracle. Unfortunately the God was thinking that they had their chance with onions. There was not going to be another miracle in Green Lake for a while. The lizards must be fed too. Stanley thought if they could somehow manage to stay alive untill sunrise, they could survive, because the hole would be as hot as hell and the lizards would go back to their nests, willy nilly. ( My lovely followers ! Did you watch the 15. episode of 6. season of HIMYM? If you watched it, you would probably know that there are some situations that make you say '' Oh honey! ''. Stanley's situation was one of them. ) They couldn't make it ,of course. When a small lizard, probably a baby ,who liked to play, climbed into Zero's ear, he couldn't stand it any more and screamed. It was the doom of the poor two. The evil three were filled with joy, yet just a moment after they found themselves in the hole too. The convicts Zigzag ,Armpit, X- Ray and the others were behind the three and they pushed them into the hole. Too bad (!)

W: 398

An outlaw full of love : Kissin' Kate Barlow (Character Analysis)

 

 Camp Green Lake was the largest lake in Texas one hundred and ten years ago, just before the curse of drought came. The lake was surrounded by beautiful peach trees.There was a pretty schoolteacher named Katherine Barlow,who was able to make the most delicious spiced peaches.She was so kind and full of life, that everybody liked her.One day she fell in love with a ''Negro'' named Sam and kissed him.

''It's against the law for a Negro to kiss a white woman.'' (p 93, l 43)



 Unfortunately it was against the law so the sheriff offered her a insolent deal either she would kiss him or Sam would be hanged. Kate didn't agree to kiss him. I like it when she stand for the values of her love and she made a plan to run away to somewhere far with Sam. Her courage aroused sympathy in me.It's a pity that they couldn't make it and Sam was killed.After that incident the pretty schoolteacher became one of the most feared outlaws in all the West. She was called ''Kissin' Kate Barlow'',because she kissed all of her victims after killing them. Guess who was going to be her very first victim? The evil sheriff, of course ! I must say, if I were an outlaw, I also would make the same choice and kill the man who was responsible for my lover's death first.





 For all these reasons, Kate is my favorite character. After her lover's death her character has considerably changed.The innocent, pretty teacher was gone and a fearles, audacious and ruthless outlaw, who also has robbed Stanley's grandfather and left him alone in the middle of nowhere, was born. It shows us that our characters take their roots from our experiences. This helpful lady could be a perfect mother unless an unreasonable rule wouldn't have caused the death of the love of her life.


"Character builds slowly, but it can be torn down with incredible swiftness."Faith Baldwin

Just watch this viedo and you'll feel the power of their love...

W: 326

A book as a semester homework. What a pity ! ( First Impressions)

When I've first heard about the book that we are supposed to read during the semester,I felt sick about it,cause we all know that the books which are given from the school are usually so boring that you can't enjoy reading.But it seems like this book will change my mind.
 Holes is about a boy named Stanley Yelnats (yeah you're right,his last name is his first name backward),who is accused of stealing a pair of famous shoes (the fact is that he's as innocent as a baby).





  Stanley Yelnatswas given a choice.The judge said, ''You may go to jail,or you may go to Camp Green Lake.'' ( p.9  , s.18-19 )


 If I were Stanley,I would make the exactly same choice,because he had no idea about how bad the Camp Green Lake could be.Despite its name suggests some place like a pretty forest land,in reality we can describe it more like a desert with deadly animals such as rattlesnakes,scorpions and yellow-spotted lizards.The boys have to dig holes everday in the face of hot sun.

 If you want to learn more about Holes,wait until I write my second entry. I suggest you all read the book or at least watch the movie.I assure you,that it won't be a waste of time.Although the main characters are teenagers,this book appeals to the taste of almost everybody.

Enjoy yourself !
Ciao



There is the trailer of the movie, incase you're interested in.
W:227