Small Steps (Holes, #2)

by Louis Sachar

Three years after being released from Camp Green Lake, Armpit is trying hard to keep his life on track, but when his old pal X-Ray shows up with a tempting plan to make some easy money scalping concert tickets, Armpit reluctantly goes along.

• ISBN10: 0385733143
• ISBN13: 9780385733144
• Publish Date: 20 April 2006 (first published 1 January 2006)
• Publish Status: Out of Stock
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Delacorte Press
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 257
• Language: English

Reviews

[Amber (The Literary Phoenix)]

When I added this book to my TBR, I looked no further than "WHAT THERE IS A SEQUEL TO HOLES WHY DID I NOT KNOW THIS" which, honestly, is not great criteria to go by when you are deciding to read a book. Besides, Small Steps is not so much a sequel as it is a companion novel... the two exist very well on their own.

And this book? It was great.

Seven Things I Loved About Small Steps

1. The racial prejudice is real here - Sachar doesn't shy away form letting you see how people treat Armpit because of his size and skin color. That's quite a bit deal in MG.

2. Ginny, Armpit's 10 y/o neighbor has cerebral palsy and she is *wonderful*.

3. The love story moves too fast and too slow, and ends in a mess. It's perfect for the story, and a lot closer to real life than a lot of books show.

4. The X-Ray/Armpit relationship resonates their social hierarchy from Camp Greenlake, and their give take is painful in a good way (because you want Armpit to make healthier choices).

5. Armpit's time at Camp Greenlake shapes a lot of this novel. I really like it when authors commit to stuff like that, instead of acting like it was in a parallel universe.

6. Sploosh makes an appearance and honestly, it just made me chuckle.

7. This book absolutely stands on its own two feet. Like I said, I didn't know what I was getting into, and while I would have been down with a similar story to Holes, that's not what's going on here. Armpit is a very different person than Stanley, and his story reflects a different world.

And four things I wish Small Steps did differently:

1. The loose ends tied up waaaaay too easily. The police investigation honestly ended mostly with a wink and a nod and after doing such a good job following through on other things, this aspect felt very phoned-in.

2. Sachar wanted to tackle a lot of different social and cultural issues here - race, celebrity, disability, socio-economic classes, prejudice against ex-cons, broken families, etc. - that I think he took on too many things for such a small book. I think I would have liked the book better if it was more about Ginny and Armpit.

3. All the family dynamics were awkward... Ginny and her mom only interacted once, Armpit had a closer relationship with his boss than his parents, and Kaira's family dynamic was just a mess.

4. Tatiana's character just seemed... pointless. It would have flowed a little better if she had been either cut, or there was more follow-through after the fallout.

Generally speaking, this is a book worth reading. I wouldn't say it has the strongest plot in the world, but the themes are so strong. The relationship between Armpit and Ginny is so precious - I would love to see a third book (haha 12 years later) just about Ginny. I adored this book, I respect the points Louis Sachar was trying to make, and I'd like to have this one on my shelf.

[clementine]

I think this is much more obviously a middle-grade book than Holes. Holes has this irresistible, timeless charm that makes it absolutely fantastic to read at any age. (Or, well, any of the ages I've been, which, admittedly, is a fairly limited range.) Small Steps isn't a bad book, and there are some very strong aspects, but it's not terribly strong overall and I think that without the connection we have to X-Ray and Armpit through Holes, it might be less compelling.

Armpit's relationship with Ginny was easily the best part of the book. It was very touching, sweet, and nuanced, and it added a nice layer of realism to the book. It also ties into the underlying (or, well, pretty overt) theme of racism in the book, as their relationship is seen completely inaccurately by various characters due to their different races.

I thought the ending was also good - it's a little more ambiguous and less perfectly happy than Holes. It was definitively an ending, and was thematically tied up well, but it isn't all "happy ever after". The climax was a bit ridiculous, but not in a horribly detrimental way. Not super realistic, but then again, neither was Holes.

Otherwise, meh. The main plot was a bit convoluted and a bit boring - nothing like the carefully-plotted, innovative, and exciting Holes. It wasn't TERRIBLE, but it also wasn't especially great. The pacing was a bit off, as well.

I don't know, I think this a charming book and I think that it's probably one that middle-grade kids will really enjoy, but it just didn't blow me away. I got the feeling that this book was Louis Sachar indulging his desire to write about his Camp Green Lake characters - which, hey, more power to him... it just doesn't necessarily translate into a fantastic novel.