Hoyos = Holes (El Barco de Vapor) (Spanish Edition)
Grade 5-9-First published in English in 1998 by Farrar, Straus &  Giroux, Sachar's novel about delinquent boys at a bizarre prison  camp has been translated into at least 16 languages and has  received several major awards including the Newbery. The  adolescent Stanley Yelnats is sent to a work camp in Texas after  being falsely accused of a minor crime. The sole occupation of  the inmates is to dig deep holes in the hard floor of a dried-up  lakebed where Campamento Lago Verde (Camp Green Lake) is now  situated. The Yelnats family history dates back to an ancestor  who had once lived in the same area where the prison camp is now  operated. This historical narrative is revealed in occasional  chapters interspersed throughout the novel. As Stanley learns to  survive in this harsh prison, he begins to realize that his fate  is irrevocably tied to the past. The two plots intertwine as  Stanley takes control of his own fate and in the process  reverses the family curse. There are many YA themes in this  well-crafted story: teenage alienation, bullying behavior, tough  kids who turn out to be needy, arbitrary authority figures who  wield their power despotically, coming of age, and more. Abos  has provided an above- average translation with only a few rough  spots. Recommended for bookstores and libraries. Maria Otero  Boisvert, "Criticas"Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.