Out of the Dust
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| Out of the Dust | |
 First edition cover |
|
| Author | Karen Hesse |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Children's novel |
| Publisher | Scholastic Press |
| Publication date | 1997 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 227 pp (first edition, hardback) |
| ISBN | ISBN 0-590-36080-9 (first edition, hardback) |
Out of the Dust is a novel written by Karen Hesse. It was winner of the Newbery Medal in 1998, Scott O'Dell Award, an ALA Notable Children's Book, an ALA "Best book for young adults", a School Library Journal "best book of the year", a Booklist "Editors' Choice" award, a Book Links "Lasting Connection", a Publishers Weekly "best book of the year", and a New York Public Library "100 Titles for Reading and Sharing" selection.
Set in Oklahoma during the years 1934-1935, this book tells the story of a family of farmers during the Dust Bowl years. The structure of the novel is unusual in that the plot is advanced entirely through a series of free verse poems.
[edit] Summary
The protagonist is 14-year-old Billie Jo Kelby, who lives with her family in the gritty farmlands of Oklahoma during the Dust Bowl. The family struggles to eke out a living from the drought-stricken farm. One of Billie Jo's solaces is playing her mother's piano. They live in Oklahoma.
Billie Jo's mother, Polly, is pregnant. Although everyone in the family looks forward to the birth, none are more anxious than Billie Jo's father, Bayard Kelby, who hopes this birth will finally give him the son he's been waiting for.
Late in the pregnancy, an accident occurs. Billie father carelessly leaves a bucket of kerosene near the stove. During the preparation for a meal, Billie Jo's mother pours the bucket of kerosene, which she believes is water, into a coffee pot. The hot kerosene catches flame. Billie Jo's mother rushes outside the house to escape the fire. Billie Jo, unaware that her mother has turned to come back into the house, flings the burning kerosene outside, covering her mother with the burning fuel. Horrified, Billie Jo futilely attempts to smother the flames with her bare hands, badly burning herself in the process. Her mother suffers from 3rd degree burns and dies while giving birth a few days later. The newborn, Franklin, dies soon after. Pa and Billie Jo both blame each other for Ma's death. The two do not speak for the majority of the book. At the end of the book Billie Jo runs away. While on a train, she meets a man who teaches her that family is more important than anything. After this encounter, Billie Jo goes back home to her father and they finally speak again. Everything seems to get better when she approves of Louise with her father. Louise shows a sign of hope.
[edit] Other characters
Ma: Billie Jo's mother and Pa's wife. Before her untimely death, she was a skilled piano player and enjoyed taking care of her apple trees. Name: Polly
Pa: Billie Jo's father, a simple farmer of few words. His relationship with Billie Jo was always somewhat distant until Ma died. Name: Bayard
Louise: Pa's girlfriend after Ma dies.
Mad Dog: A friend of Billie Jo, and a gifted singer.
Miss Freeland: Billie Jo's school teacher.
Aunt Ellis: Billie Jo's father's sister who sent a letter asking for Billie Jo to move to Lubbock, Texas to live with her.
Arley Wanderdale: Billie Jo's music teacher/mentor.
| Preceded by The View from Saturday |
Newbery Medal recipient 1998 |
Succeeded by Holes |
