Out Of The Dust

Rating:
Summary: Out of the Dust
Review: "Dust piles up like snow across the prairie, dunes leaning against fences, mountains of dust pushing over farms." (Hesse, 102) Life is hard for thirteen-year-old Billie Jo Kelby, born during the Dust Bowl and the Depression in the panhandle of Oklahoma. Her love for her mother, father and to-be born brother and the piano compels her to stay in this dangerous, life- threatening territory that could shatter her family's whole way of living with one hour of a dust storm. Tragedy occurs, though not from a dust storm, but from a crises from a stove fire that leaves Billy Jo's mother and unborn baby lifeless and her hands useless stubs which puts all of Billy Jo's dreams in peril. This is an exciting book with great descriptions and wonderful poetry. The best poem, in my point of view, is the poem "The Dream" (Hesse, 193) which is a simile comparing the piano to Billy Jo's dead mother. Although this book is sad, it has an excellent ending and it's a great book for ages nine to twelve. So I recommend Out of the Dust as a great novel. S. A.

Rating:
Summary: Out of the Dust
Review: I thought this book was fantastic. Karen Hesse used very few words to tell the story of Billie Jo, a 14 year old girl growing up in Oklahoma during the dust bowl. Although, she uses few words, the words that she does use, tell the story completely and vividly. The story is written in the form of a journal of non-rhyming poems.

When Billie Jo loses her mother and severely burns her hands in an accident, Hesse portrays her pain in a way that the reader really feels. My hands actually hurt when Billie Jo is describing the things that cause pain in her injured hands. Billie Jo and her father, who is grief-stricken, must find a way to reconnect and support each other through the bleak days of the dust bowl. Although this story takes place during the dust bowl, the themes of healing, strengthening family relationships, and hope that are found throughout the story are timeless.

My daughter, a 7th grader, read this book for English class and then suggested it to me. I started reading it last night and could not put it down until I was done with it.

Rating:
Summary: Out of the Dust
Review: Out of the Dust Review

"I don't know my father anymore. He sits across from me, He looks like my father, He chews his food like my father, He brushes his dusty hair back Like my father, But he is a stranger." (Hesse, 76)

This is the first stanza to my favorite poem, " The Empty Spaces." In this poem the narrator, Billie Jo, explains how she and her father are gradually separating from each other because a terrible accident happened in their family. This amazing book written by Karen Hesse is a book of poems. It is about thirteen year old Billie Jo and her life during the Dust Bowl. Billie Jo has a powerful love for pianos and leaving the dust in Oklahoma. This marvelous book includes many examples of figurative language. My favorite simile is "The wind roared like fire," which refers to the blustery winds during another horrid dust storm. All of these poems have great depth and meaning. I would recommend this book to ages 10-14.

Rating:
Summary: Boring and Depressing Struggles and Hardships
Review: Out of the Dust, by Karen Hesse, is a 2 star book.

Out of the Dust is about a family living in Oklahoma during the Dust Bowl in the 1930s and their struggles and hardships. Their wheat is not growing and they need the money. To begin with, Out of the Dust is depressing. The largest event that happens is when Daddy puts a pail of kerosene by the stove. Ma thinks that it is a pail of water and lifts it to make coffee for Daddy. It catches on fire and Ma runs out to get Daddy. After Ma runs out, Billie Jo (the main character) picks up the pail and throws it outside. It hits Ma and she catches on fire. As the book says, "Ma got burned bad." This sets the stage for the whole story. As you can see, Out of the Dust is depressing, but it does teach you a lot about the Dust Bowl and the Great Depression.

Furthermore, Out of the Dust is boring. It goes by quick though because it is written as a lot of free verse poems that sort of act as "chapters." I was glad when I was finished. I would recommend this book to middle schoolers, although I did not like it very much, because younger students would not have the attention span for such a boring book. It is especially boring to me because I do not like poems, especially ones that do not have a certain format or do not rhyme. If you just need something to read though, Out of the Dust is not a bad choice. For the reasons above, Out of the Dust is a 2 star book.

Rating:
Summary: it's a good story
Review: Recommendation-
I recommend this book to anyone that's 13 years old and up because the first part of the story is emotional. Billy's mom died. "Ma died that day giving birth to my brother." Billy's mom died because of the fire in which she was burned badly. This is why I recommend this book to older kids. I like this book because when people that are close to you pass away it shows how you can get on with your live. "I was invited to graduation, to play the piano." This citation shows that people start to think that Billy is normal, and she can play the piano again.