What I'm Reading Now

Winner of the Newberry Award and the Scott O’Dell Award for Historical fiction, Karen Hesse’s poetry book, Out of the Dust is simply haunting. Written in free verse, Out of the Dust is about a family caught in the dust bowls that hit Oklahoma in the thirties. Told by Billie Jo; a fourteen year old teen, who watches as her family is consumed by dust that covers the land, houses and animals. She must find a way to leave this hopeless place, even if it means leaving her family behind.

Evaluation: I couldn’t put this book down, and I have never felt that way about a poetry book. Karen Hesse is able to capture the heart of this tragic story in just a few poetic lines. Powerful in its simplicity, this book will stay with you. It is an excellent choice for a unit on poetry and to include in American History during the thirties