Out of the Dust is a verse novel by Karen Hesse, published in 1997. It won the 1998 Newbery Medal. Set in Oklahoma during the years 1934–1935, the novel tells the story of a family of farmers during the Dust Bowl years. The book is about the main character is Billie Jo and her family's struggles. The structure of the novel is unusual, the story is told through a series of first-person free verse poems. Billie Jo Kelby is described in the opening of the book as a long-legged girl, thin and red-headed just like her father . She was expected to be a boy, and her parents had chosen her name only to be surprised with a baby girl. With a unique hunger for the piano and the taste of apples, Billie Jo has to go through many struggles, including the loss of her mother. This book was very educational about how it was like during an actual difficult time of history , and I learned a lot from it.
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