Out of the Dust

Karen Hesse's Out of the Dust (1998 Newberry Medal winner) is a poignant coming of age story chronicling a young woman's struggle with loss and hardship during Oklahoma's Dust Bowl. Written in blank verse, its rhythm somehow matches the spare landscape and emotional toil of the protagonist. It's an......more

will someone tell me why this is written in verse?? it doesnt add anything to the feel of the book; if anything, it is distracting and seems very contrived. why would this character be writing poems?? it would make so much more sense to write this as diary entries. maybe because poems take up more r......more

5***** and a ❤ Hesse can say so much in so few words. This is an extraordinary work of fiction, written entirely in verse. It tells the story of a family during the Oklahoma Dust Bowl of the Depression. It's an emotionally evocative story of growing up in the harshness of poverty and tragedy. A wonde......more

I never enjoyed my history subject when I was young, I always have the worst teacher and the worst field trips in my entire life. Contradict to that, I enjoyed reading historical fiction and children's books. Although I don't have any idea about dust bowl or the great depression or whatever happened......more