Out of the Dust Analysis

If you've been following our coverage of Out of the Dust to this point, you've probably picked up that this book is the ultimate Based on a True Story Novel. While Karen Hesse could have written a...

Out of the Dust is a classic first-person story where we get to witness the main character's growth first hand. Hesse offers a rather unique twist on this point of view by writing the book as Billi...

Out of the Dust is set in a real place during a real time in history when real stuff went down—but it's also fictional, since Billie Jo and her family are figments of Hesse's imagination. This me...

Billie Jo's story is pretty dark—there's no escaping that. It's filled with death, destruction, hardship, loss, and of course, dust. The poetic style of the book is a big help in establishing the...

One question that's probably been boggling your mind is, "What's up with the poetry? I thought I was reading a novel." Don't worry, we promise you are. What's up, is that Hesse uses individual free...

At first, Out of the Dust looks like one of those titles that are blindingly obvious. Of course Billie Jo wants out of the dust—it's destroying her life. Her dad is losing his mind, her neighbors...

It's very significant that the final line of the book is "and I play" (111.7). Music is the singular passion Billie Jo is tied to throughout the whole book, as well as the legacy her mother leaves...

A novel composed of poetry might sound easy, and it probably will take you less time to get through Out of the Dust than non-poetic books, but its economy of language demands that you give the stor...

It's a Hard Knock LifeAs the curtain rises on Billie Jo's story, we get a glimpse of the status quo for the Kelbys. Billie Jo's family might look pretty normal on the surface, but there's more to...

Out of the Dust originally began as a picture book. Karen Hesse was so fascinated by her research on the Dust Bowl that it morphed into a novel. (Source.)The dust storm Daddy and Billie Jo get caug...

The only thing that's really hot about this book is the dry, drought-ravaged ground. And that, Shmoopsters, is the long and the short of it.

The Dust Bowl (throughout the book) Franklin D. Roosevelt (7; 14.1; 38.3; 40.1; 61.4)Migrants (3.6; 31.4; 10.5; 11.1, 11.4; 84; 99.1, 99.2; 100.1, 100.2)World War I (24; 46.1)Kilauea (43.1)Federal...