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Summary: Out of the Dust By Jessica
Review: "I didn't intend to, but I like her"(Hesse 212) This quote is from my favorite poem in Karen Hesse's Out of the Dust. The poem is called "The Other Woman." It is focused on Billie Jo's daddy's new girlfriend. The book Out of the Dust is a wonderful book. It is in narrative poem form, which is an easy read. It has large quantities of figures of speech and good content. This book is about a girl named Billie Jo who lives in the middle of the Dust Bowl. She has to struggle through piano recitals and the death of two very close family members by a fatal fire. For most of the story Billie Jo tries to get through the rough times she and her father go through. Billie Jo's father is so unpleasant he doesn't even talk much to his own daughter. Through out the story, the Dust Bowl brings many blustery dust storms upon Billie Jo and her father. This makes it very hard for them to eat, sleep, and especially for Billie Jo's burns to heal. I felt sorry for Billie Jo, even if this was not a true story. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes to read historical fiction.
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Summary: A Page Turner for the Heart
Review: I read the book Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse. It really struck me deep with all of the intriguing but harsh realities of the Great Depression. It is about a girl named Billie Jo whose father is a farmer. Her mother has unremitting miscarriages, and finally dies from one. Her father's farm is failing, because of the dust storms that run amok over all the crops, all of the time. Grasshoppers come in swarms to eat what has survived the extreme weather. Everything has gone bust. The government is in trouble, and the economy is down. The stock market crashed, leaving millions of people and families homeless, jobless, and just poor. Karen Hesse explains most of this through one 12 year old girl who just wants to grow up. She loves to play piano, but was appallingly burned from Kerosene in a freak accident. Billie Jo can't play anymore, and her mother was pregnant with 3rd degree burns covered all over her body.
Everything was so depressing and blunt in the voice of Billie Jo, the main character, it really made me understand about the Great Depression. Through all of this hardship and despair, Billie Jo remains stalwart and youthful. She hates the dust storms, but loves her silent father too much to leave. Every single night Billie Jo goes to bed with dust covering her hair, face, and body. Billie Jo is a thoughtful, but carefree young girl, who just want to be a kid and liver her life fully.
Although this is a great story, Karen Hesse didn't talk at all about the stock market. Farmers were not oblivious to the entire outside world, and she made Billie Jo's life seem like it was in just one little box. I thought that that would have been a nice blip to inform students about other causes of the Great Depression. Farmers were not the only ones that caused the depression. Even though they bought too much land and took too many bank loans out. Many city dwellers took huge risks in the stock market. I would only give this book 4 stars because Karen Hesse left out a main historical fact in her book. The crash of '29, the crash of the stock market.
Compared to many other books this was amazing writing. The naturalness of the poems flowed through my heart at such a unruffled sturdy pace I couldn't stop reading. I think that the creativity of the poems and the irregularity of the format was new and exciting. Another, somewhat irritating, part of this book was the randomness of some poems. For example: Kilauea - A volcano erupted in Hawaii. It threw huge chunks into the air, the ground shook, and smoke choked everything in its path. ...sounds a little like a dust storm. September 1934 - pg. 79. This has no evident relativeness to the story, and it has no apparent relativeness to the broad idea. I think that those kinds of poems could have definitely been left out. Personally, that is one of the main rationales why I gave this book 4 stars. Overall, this was a great book, but when I think that one of the key historical points missing, I can't believe it. I would recommend this book to any future reader interested, but I would not nominate this book for the Newberry Award. But it is true, this book was a page turner for the heart.
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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.
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Summary: Out of the Dust review
Review: I was assigned to read Out of the Dust as an assignment for my English class. I had tried reading it earlier, in about 5th grade, but had found it boring and hard to understand. (I am now in 7th grade.) However, recently I've started to write my own poetry, so I could relate to Billie Joe's (the main character) way of expressing herself. Also, we had just finished learning about the Dust Bowl in history class, so it was easier to understand parts that had confused me earlier.
I actually enjoyed this book very much. I liked it for its genuineness, sincerity and open honesty. I liked how things were described so I could really picture everything in my head. The poetry I write is similar to hers, so I learned a little about that as well.
I really admire Billie Jo's character in the book. She has courage, determination and perseverance. She pushes through certain things that handicap her and follows her dream of playing the piano. She acts strong, like everything's under control, for her father, friends and neighbors. She tries to act like the hard times aren't getting to her, but inside of her they are. Those emotions get out through her music and her writing. I think she is a very talented individual, but definitely had a hard life. I have trouble imagining what life what be like if I lived during the Great Depression/Dust Bowl. I am quite fortunate that I don't live then.
I think that Billie Jo's community is really quite remarkable. Even in the most desperate times, they pull together, help each other out and manage to keep their children from starving. Local bands play music together for families, which gives everyone a chance to forget the daily trials they must go through. Another example is when the sheriff busts a group of moon shiners, and then gives the sugar that they used, to the children (who are, of course, delighted).
I think that when the author wrote this story, she meant to send little messages out through her work. One of them was that even the smallest kind deed can make a difference. Also, if everyone helps everyone out, no one will really have to suffer.
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Summary: NO GO FOR BILLIE JO
Review: I'm sorry but unless you are looking to throw yourself in a state of depression, this book is of no use to you.
The story is about a girl who loses almost everything she has in a fire taking place around the time of the Dust Bowl. Sounds happy, huh?
And when I say that the girl, Billie Jo, loses almost everything, which is closer to 'everything' than 'almost', I mean, she loses almost everything.
Family? Her mother and unborn brother die in a kitchen fire, and the saddest part is that their deaths could have been prevented if Billie Jo hadn't flung boiling water out the door her mother had been walking through, and as you might imagine, that causes grief for Billie Jo, and her father as well. In fact, he goes on to become an alcoholic, or something like it, who lives in oblivion to pretty much everything. Even Billie Jo suffers from physical pain, when her hands were severely burned from the pot of boiling water she had unintentionally flung at her mother, causing her death. Belongings? Well, her family, or as the previous reviewer put it, 'what was left of it'..(I give you credit, whoever you are!) ...lost their fields, which were their main staple of income, in the dust bowl.
Now, you might think that I'm exaggerating, but I assure you I am not. Before I had read it, my friends had told me how sick a book this was (and darn it, I couldn't agree more) and I just read it because I thought THEY were the ones exaggerating.
So, you can be like me, If you wish, and go along and read it, which might not be such a bad idea, so you can get a taste for yourself how morally depressing this book is, or you can play it safe and not risk the nightmares.
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Summary: A sad but wonderful story of a family's trials and hopes.
Review: Out of the Dust is a sad story of hope and pride. This wonderful book is a gathering of journal entries from the point of view of a young girl named Billie Jo while growing up during the Dust Bowl in Oklahoma. Her family tries to grow wheat, which is often destroyed by wind, lack of rain, and dust. Dust storms fill the peoples' homes, as well as eyes, ears, noses, and mouths - Billie Jo sets the table with the dishes upside down to keep the dust off them! The family barely gets by with a lot of hard work and determination. Billie Jo's mother dies in childbirth from injuries from an accident, which also hurts Billie Jo's hands. The mother's death was devastating, and because of Billie Jo's hands, she couldn't play the piano, her only comfort. Her father was stubborn and difficult, so there were some very tough years. Many others have moved on to California or elsewhere, but through hope, pride, and love, this family makes it through.
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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.
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Summary: Out of the Dust
Review: Out of the Dust Have you ever heard of a book that has courage, sadness, accidents, and
Curiosity? We'll you guessed right, it's Out of the Dust. Billie Jo lives in Oklahoma were there are dust storms. All the crops were gone except Billie Jo's mom's apple trees. Her mom and dad get in a fight because her dad wants to re-plant his wheat. Meanwhile, her mom was pregnant with a baby boy. After a few days later an accident happened which changed Billie Jo and her Dads life forever. To find out what happened to Billie Jo's mom check out the book at a local library.
I thought the book was fabulous because it was emotional for me. Billie Jo's experience for me was also exciting, because she would do things her mother told her not to do. Also she was curious, by going away and finding certain people and certain things. I recommend this book because if you're an emotional person you would love this book. So grab it, read it, and love it!!
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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.
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Summary: Out of the Dust
Review: The Newbery Medal award winning novel Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse was an excellent depiction of life in the Dust Bowl around the 1930's. This story is written about the hardships and joys of 12-year-old Billie Jo Kelby. She lives on a small farm with her pregnant Ma and Pa. Life is hard and laborous for her but she still has time to play her piano. She is very talented and has a hunger for playing. Dispite the hardships of everyday life Billie Jo is still happy. Then, the horrific and terrible loss of her Mother and infant brother in a accident she is pulled into a world of dispair and bitterness. Her relationship with her father diminishes as they drift apart. Billie Jo must pull through the great loss of her mother and regain her relationship with her father. This is a sad and heart-warming novel that all teens should read. Karen Hesse has a unique writing style and a gift for writing. I think that this is a very good book and i give it 5 out of 5 stars, I highly recommend this to anyone.
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