Stanley Yelnets was unlucky.
The lack of luck, was in fact a jinx ,a century old, involving; a pig, a promise, peaches
and onions, a kissing outlaw, and an inauspicious ancestor.
The curse re-surfaced when Stanley finds himself at
Camp Green Lake,
a correctional facility, for a deed he did not do.
The camp's maxim to ' establish character ' through hole digging is a
pretense, and clandestine plan by the Warden, to unearth more than
' moral enrichment ' from the
boys at Camp Green Lake.
The confluence of fate with the members of Group D - (Stanley, a.k.a.
Caveman, X-Ray, Armpit, Zigzag, Magnet and Zero ) pit the Warden, the
unscrupulous Mr. Sir, and Counselor Pendanski against one another and
themselves, as they search for a secret, buried as deep as the holes they
are required to dig.
A lunch time brawl sends Zero running into the unmerciful desert heat
without food or water. Stanley follows, risking all, to rescue Zero.
They survive the hazards and yellow-spotted lizards to discover riches,
(rightly belonging to the Yelnats family), and Zero's identity as Madame
Zeroni's great-great-grandson.
The familial hex is broken and the two boys are reunited with family,
and enjoy the happiness of a successful life...
This well- written, intriguing story has an underlying moral theme,
that combines delightfully with an entertaining style.