by Louis Sachar
When Stanley Yelnats is convicted of a crime he didn’t commit, he has the choice either to go to prison or to Green Lake correctional camp. In the camp (where there is no actual lake), convicts are forced to dig five-foot holes, one a day, every day. But Stanley soon realizes that the digging is for more than just building character: the Warden is looking for something.
This book was a quick, fun read, blending an ancestor’s gypsy curse, a Wild West outlaw, and a dangerous desert creature seamlessly into the story of one boy’s time in a juvenile correctional facility. I loved the voice, the story, and how perfectly all the loose ends were tied together.