On the last day, he was to carry Madame Zeroni up the mountain, let her drink from the stream, and sing the lullaby to her.

Elya had to take the piglet up the mountain to drink from a stream, and, while the piglet was drinking, he was to sing a lullaby. If Elya didn't follow the instructions, Madame Zeroni would put a curse on him and all of his descendents. She gave Elya a piglet and specific instructions to follow. Because Elya had nothing to offer for Myra's hand in marriage, he went to visit an Egyptian woman named Madame Zeroni, who couldn't walk. A pig farmer named Igor also wanted to marry Myra and offered Myra's father a pig for her hand in marriage. Stanley believes that he has been unjustly accused of stealing the sneakers because of his 'no-good-dirty-rotten-pig-stealing-great-great-grandfather.' When Stanley's great-great-grandfather, Elya Yelnats (who never really stole a pig) was 15 years old and living in Latvia, he fell in love with a girl named Myra Menke and wanted to marry her. Because he is from a poor family and has never been to camp, he chooses Camp Green Lake. Stanley is unfairly sentenced by the judge and has a choice of going to jail or to Camp Green Lake.

During the trial, Stanley discovers that the sneakers belonged to Clyde 'Sweet Feet' Livingston, a famous professional baseball player who had donated his sneakers for an auction to help raise money for a homeless shelter for children. Unfortunately, only Stanley's parents believe he is innocent. The police stop Stanley and he is mistakenly arrested for stealing the sneakers. Excited because he thinks the sneakers will assist his father, who is trying to invent a use for old sneakers, Stanley runs toward home. While walking home, a pair of old sneakers 'fell out of the sky' and hit him on the head. Stanley misses his bus and has to walk home. Stanley's life changes dramatically after Derrick Dunne, a classmate who is much smaller than Stanley and is fond of picking on Stanley, takes Stanley's notebook and throws it in the toilet in the boys' restroom at school. Stanley is a good-natured, kind, middle-school student who is ridiculed by classmates because he is overweight. An only child, Stanley lives with his mother and his father, who is an inventor.

Stanley Yelnats (whose name is palindromic - which means that his last name is his first name spelled backward) is the protagonist (or main character) of the novel. The subplots are tall-tale motifs that provide explanations about incidents involving previous Yelnats generations that significantly impact Stanley's life as well as the lives of others. Sachar writes the humorous plot of Holes in a straightforward manner however, he weaves into the plot three subplots.

Study Help for All 1990s Newbery Medal Winners.

Introduction to the 1990s Newbery Medal Winners.

Holes book stanley