In the novel, Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Giff, the main character, Hollis, receives multiple gifts (tangible and intangible) that are crucial to the plot of the story. An example of a tangible gift in the story was the wooden figure given to Hollis by Josie. Another gift Hollis received was a family that was her own, the Regans. These changed Hollis’ life for the better and created heartwarming and exciting moments in the story. At the young age of twelve, Hollis Woods experienced a constant cycle of going from foster home to foster home. She figured that her stay with Josie would be a similar event. When she first arrived at the home, Josie showed Hollis the wooden carvings she had made of special people in her life. Josie promised …show more content…
When she finally received this gift, it was a pivotal moment in her life and in the novel, but it was not an easy road getting there. Before moving in with Josie, Hollis stayed with the Regans. From the moment Hollis met this family it seemed like everything clicked, everything felt right. Towards the end of the period where the Regans had agreed to foster Hollis, they decided that they couldn’t let her go. As a family, everyone determined that Hollis’ forever home was with the Regans. Once this happened, things took a turn for the worst. Steven and the Old Man were fighting more than ever and Hollis thought it was her fault. She felt that her presence was tearing the family apart, so she ran away. This is where the story of the two gifts intersect and she went to live with Josie. After a while at Josie’s, the Regans and Hollis’ paths met again and all of the misunderstandings were cleared. Hollis could finally live with Izzy, the Old Man, Steven, and the new baby, Christina, and belong to a family like she had dreamed of as long as she could remember. The final words in the book were, “So there are five of us now: a mother, a father, a brother, and two sisters. A family.” (pg. 166)
In Pictures of Hollis Woods there were many gifts incorporated into the story. Whether these gifts were tangible or not, they were incredibly meaningful to Hollis. They were special for different