Holes: Final Reading Guide

Chapters 31-50

We did it! We made it to the end of another book. And what a satisfying one it was. So many points of overlap, so many things come together. And like putting in that last piece of a puzzle, a little bittersweet too.

In this post we are going to cover the last chapters of Holes. We’re talking character development, some close reading, narrative construction, and as always your discussion questions to spark further reflection on the book.

In these chapter we see Stanley take charge of his fate. Finally we see him take control of his situation, and drive (literally) the story ahead. Think about it, this WHOLE time things have been happening TO HIM. His bad luck, being bullied, being wrongfully accused, taking blame for things he didn’t do like the sack of sunflower seeds. But when he drives the car, (even it’s just for a moment) and tries to escape, he it taking his destiny into his own hands and something truly extraordinary comes out of it. And in the most unlikely of ways, two loner kids from less than ideal circumstances find a bond in their friendship. Maybe it was just meant to be ;)

I admire how subtle the change in Stanley is. Louis Sachar does a great job to remind us of the kind of kid Stanley was compared to who he is know. Obviously we see major points where he acts differently, but I’m thinking of those more under the radar moments where Stanley changes the way he sees himself. For instance, on page 166 when Zero and Stanley are hauling up the mountain, the narrator says, “he could never have done that a few months ago.” And what about this other moment later on page 186, “he liked himself now.”

Stanley fell into a trap I think a lot of people fall into. He took how other people saw him and started to see himself that way to. Maybe you have had some experience with this. Maybe someone said something about you and you started to think that was true about yourself. In your case I hope it was only good things! But even if it wasn’t, you are more capable and wonderful than what a bully says about you, Zero and Stanley are great examples of that.

This book is constructed so well. If it were a house it would be sturdy like a castle, but with a lot of trap doors and hidden spaces. Sachar himself said