by Karen Hesse
Back Flap Description:
"Dust piles up like snow across the prairie..."
A terrible accident has transformed Billie Jo's life, scarring her inside and out. Her mother is gone. Her father can't talk about it. And the one thing that might make her feel better - playing the piano - is impossible with her wounded hands.
To make matters worse, dust storms are devastating the family farm and all the farms nearby. While others flee from the dust bowl, Billie Jo is left to find peace in the bleak landscape of Oklahoma - and in the surprising landscape of her own heart.
My Thoughts:
Although Out of the Dust was written over fifteen years ago, this poignant novel in verse is just as powerful today as it was in 1998 when it won the Newbery Medal Award. Ms. Hesse's eloquent, poetic style coupled with her amazing and accurate descriptions of the Great Depression of the 1930's, make this novel a true work of art. The author presents a protagonist who must deal with more than her share of life's harshest miseries; the beauty of this story is that the reader ultimately sees the young heroine transcend her pain with strength, dignity, and courage. I would highly recommend Out of the Dust to readers from the ages of eight to eighty.
To learn more about the author, Karen Hesse, click here: http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/contributor/karen-hesse
