Small Steps

Remember Armpit, from HOLES? It's been two years since he was released from Camp Green Lake Juvenile Correctional Facility, and ever since, he's been trying to stay clean. In order to stay clean, he made five goals:

1. Graduate from high school.
2. Get a job.
3. Save his money.
4. Avoid situations that might turn violent.
5. Lose the name Armpit.
(By the way, this is not a sequel to HOLES; you don't need to read HOLES to enjoy this book.)

At first, everything goes smoothly, but, slowly, every single one of those steps will be a challenge to Armpit.

For the past year, Armpit has been working for a landscaping and irrigation company, and he has saved almost a thousand dollars. But one day, his friend from camp, X-Ray, tells him that he has the perfect plan to double his money. Rock singer, Kaira DeLeon, is going on tour, and her next stop is their own town. X-Ray's plan is to buy twelve tickets and resell them for double the money. But since X-Ray doesn't have any money, he asks Armpit for all his savings. Armpit is not sure that this plan is such a great idea, but he doesn't want to let his friend down. So after giving it a lot of thought, he decides to do it.

When I read that I went: What??!! Is he stupid or what? Of course he's never going to see his money again! Or is he?

Well, unfortunately that's all I can tell you. Oh, wait! There is something else I can tell you -- somehow, Armpit and his 10-year-old neighbor, who suffers cerebral paralysis, gets to meet rock star Kaira DeLeon. But you'll have to read the book to learn how that neat event happened.

Happy reading! (:

-Sharon[: