OUT OF THE DUST

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Hesse, Karen. 1997. OUT OF THE DUST. New
York, New York: Scholastic Press. ISBN 0-590-36080-9

2. PLOT SUMMARY
Karen Hesse tells the story of farm life, dust storms, and the 1930’s Depression era, through the first person narrative of a fourteen-year-old girl named Billie Jo Kelby. OUT OF THE DUST is a wonderful coming of age novel about a young girl’s bleak life on a wheat farm, during the horrific Dust Bowl. Further, this is a story about a young person’s struggle against the elements of nature, the break down and the rebuilding of a family’s life.

3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
OUT OF THE DUST is a historical novel written in a journal style of blank verse poems. Karen Hesse’s use of spacing reflects the emotions of the characters in the story. For example, when Billie Jo is playing the piano, Hesse spacing of words remind me of piano keys and people swaying to the beat of the music. The lines on each page capture the beautiful rhythm of this wonderful novel.
Throughout this book, Hesse provides recurring imagery of dust, fire, wind, and red. For example, Billie Jo states, ”I hollered myself red the day I was born. Red’s the color I’ve stayed ever since.” Further,” Daddy named me Billie Jo. He wanted a boy. Instead, he got a long-legged girl with a wide mouth and cheekbones like bicycle handles. He got a redheaded, freckled, narrow-hipped girl with a fondness for apples and a hunger for playing fierce piano.” Moreover, “. . .Wind came, bringing a red dust like prairie fire, hot and peppery, searing the inside of my nose, the whites of my eyes. Roaring dust, turning the day from sunlight to midnight.” Finally, ”And I know now that all the time I was trying to get out of the dust, the fact is, what I am, I am because of the dust. And what I am is good enough. Even for me.”
The main characters in Karen Hesse’s OUT OF THE DUST novel are Billie Jo Kelby, Bayard Kelby,Polly (Ma) Kelby, Mad Dog Craddock, and Louise. This story takes place during the Great Depression, on a farm in the Oklahoma Panhandle,
during the winter of 1934 through the fall of 1935. During this time, in the Oklahoma Panhandle, there were severe dust storms, drought, and tornadoes that caused the soil to erode. Farmers and their families suffered great losses. This time in history is called the Dust Bowl. Billie Jo wants to be “free of the weight of dust.’’
There are several major themes in OUT OF THE DUST. The themes are family, loss, grief, forgiveness, and the harsh environment. In this novel, Billie Jo and her father suffer numerous losses. The first loss is when Billie Jo’s best friend Livvie and her family move away to California to avoid the Dust Bowl. Next, Billie Jo’s mother dies during childbirth. Later, Billie Jo’s newborn brother dies. Then, due to the fire that caused the death of Billie Jo’s mother, Billie Jo suffers the loss of not being able to play the piano, because of her severely burned hands. As a result of the accident, Billie Jo has experienced the loss of a mother, a brother, the inability to play the piano, her self-esteem, and a grieving father who has lost everything and everyone, except for his daughter, Billie Jo.
OUT OF THE DUST is an excellent read aloud. I read this book to my class, during story time. My students loved this book! They did not want me to put it down. My students really enjoyed the rhythm of the words.

4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)
Starred review in BOOKLIST: “A Powerfully compelling tale of a girl with enormous strength, courage, and love.”
Starred review in PUBLISHERS WEEKLY: “Readers may find their own feelings swaying in beat with the heroine’s shifting moods.”
Starred review in SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL: “Free-Verse poems...allow the narrator to speak for herself much more eloquently than would be possible in standard prose.”

5. CONNECTIONS
*For students to make a music connection,throughout the day, provide Depression-era music for the students to enjoy.
*Allow students to read other books set during the Great Depression. Compare and contrast the lives of these characters.
Porter, Tracey. TREASURES IN THE DUST. ISBN 0613182847
Stanley, Jerry. CHILDREN OF THE DUST BOWL: THE TRUE STORY OF THE SCHOOL AT WEEDPATCH CAMP.ISBN 0517880946