Poetry - OUT OF THE DUST

Bibliography
Hesse, Karen. 1997. OUT OF THE DUST. Scholastic Press. New York,
New York. ISBN 0590360809

Plot Summary
This novel, written in poetry, is a story about a fourteen year old girl living in Oklahoma during the dust bowl. The reader encounters the struggles of the family, the young girl, and the terrible feeling of everything covered in dust.

Critical Analysis
OUT OF THE DUST is written in free verse form. It does have some visual imagery such as, “Ma starts to quaking but she won’t let Daddy see./ Instead, she goes out to the chickens/ And/ Her anger,/ Simmering over like a pot in an empty kitchen,/ Boils itself down doing chores.” (p.41). Visual imagery is minimal and used carefully to help the reader understand what life in the Oklahoma Dust Bowl was really like. This free verse poetry is an easy read as it reads like a child’s diary. I thought that Hesse portrayed Billie Joe’s life and mood swings beautifully. Readers will be forced to feel the feelings that go through this young girl’s mind.

Review Excerpt(s)
School Library Journal: “A triumphant story, eloquently told through prose-poetry.”
Kirkus Reviews: “Told in free-verse poetry of dated entries that span the winter of 1934 to the winter of 1935, this is an unremittingly bleak portrait of one corner of Depression-era life.”


Connections
*This book could be used to teach about World War II and the life of secrecy in Los Alamos.
*This book could be used to compare a boy’s perspective to a girl’s perspective of the dust bowl.
*This book could be used to compare with other events in the depression.
*This book could be used to compare fiction and nonfiction stories of the dust bowl.
*this book could be compared with other dust bowl books to show the difference between a book written in dialogue and a book written in poetry.
Turner, Ann. DUST FOR DINNER. ISBN 0060233761
Durbin, William. THE JOURNAL OF C.J. JACKSON. ISBN 0439153069
Medearis, Angela Shelf. PICKING PEAS FOR A PENNY. ISBN: 0938349546
Stanley, Jerry. CHILDREN OF THE DUST BOWL: THE TRUE STORY OF THE SCHOOL AT WEEDPATCH CAMP. ISBN: 0517880946