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The Warden
In 1880s Green Lake, Miss Katherine was the town’s beloved schoolteacher. She was beautiful, charming, and an exceptional educator, and so she was beloved by children, parents, and her adult students alike. She also won a special prize at the Fourth of July picnic every year for her spiced peaches. The town expected her to marry Trout Walker, the wealthiest bachelor, but Miss Katherine turned down his advances. Miss Katherine was also friends with Sam, the African-American onion seller. He fixed the schoolhouse over the course of a semester, and at the end, Miss Katherine and Sam discovered that they'd fallen in love. They kissed in the rain one night not long after. Miss Katherine was distraught the next day when Trout Walker led a mob to torch the schoolhouse, and the sheriff refused to do anything about it. She was shocked and disgusted when the sheriff asked for a kiss, and she tried to help Sam escape. Trout Walker shot Sam and rescued her. Three days later, Miss Katherine killed the sheriff and kissed him. She spent the next twenty years as Kissin' Kate Barlow, one of the most feared outlaws in the west. During those twenty years, she attacked a stagecoach carrying the first Stanley Yelnats and stole his suitcase full of valuable bonds and promissory notes, which she buried in Green Lake (which was, by then, a ghost town). Trout Walker came for her treasure twenty years after Sam's death and she died laughing after refusing to tell him where she buried the first Stanley's suitcase. In the present day, Zero survives in the desert by eating her canned spiced peaches, which survived for over 100 years in Sam's boat on the dried-up lake.
Miss Katherine/Kissin' Kate Barlow Quotes in Holes
The Holes quotes below are all either spoken by Miss Katherine/Kissin' Kate Barlow or refer to Miss Katherine/Kissin' Kate Barlow. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Part 1, Chapter 23
Quotes
A lot of men in town were not educated. This didn't bother Miss Katherine. She knew they'd spent most of their lives working on farms and ranches and hadn't had much schooling. That was why she was there—to teach them.
But Trout didn't want to learn. He seemed to be proud of his stupidity.
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Everyone in town had seen—and heard—the Walkers' new boat. It made a horrible loud noise and spewed ugly black smoke all over the beautiful lake.
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Part 1, Chapter 26
Quotes
Miss Katherine jerked her hand free. As she hurried to the door, she heard the sheriff say, "The law will punish Sam. And God will punish you."
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These are the facts:
The Walker boat smashed into Sam's boat. Sam was shot and killed in the water. Katherine Barlow was rescued against her wishes. When they returned to the shore, she saw Mary Lou's body lying on the ground. The donkey had been shot in the head.
That all happened one hundred and ten years ago. Since then, not one drop of rain has fallen on Green Lake.
You make the decision: Whom did God punish?
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Miss Katherine/Kissin' Kate Barlow Quotes in Holes
The Holes quotes below are all either spoken by Miss Katherine/Kissin' Kate Barlow or refer to Miss Katherine/Kissin' Kate Barlow. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Part 1, Chapter 23
Quotes
A lot of men in town were not educated. This didn't bother Miss Katherine. She knew they'd spent most of their lives working on farms and ranches and hadn't had much schooling. That was why she was there—to teach them.
But Trout didn't want to learn. He seemed to be proud of his stupidity.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Everyone in town had seen—and heard—the Walkers' new boat. It made a horrible loud noise and spewed ugly black smoke all over the beautiful lake.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Part 1, Chapter 26
Quotes
Miss Katherine jerked her hand free. As she hurried to the door, she heard the sheriff say, "The law will punish Sam. And God will punish you."
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
These are the facts:
The Walker boat smashed into Sam's boat. Sam was shot and killed in the water. Katherine Barlow was rescued against her wishes. When they returned to the shore, she saw Mary Lou's body lying on the ground. The donkey had been shot in the head.
That all happened one hundred and ten years ago. Since then, not one drop of rain has fallen on Green Lake.
You make the decision: Whom did God punish?
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
