In 1998, it won a newbery medal, and other various awards such as the scott odell award. Told in free verse, this is the story of a young girls life in the dust bowl of oklahoma during the great depression. Out of the dust is told in first person from the point of view of billie jo. Hes definitely got arley wanderdales attention and billie jo s too.
Billie jo loves her family and her music, and she struggles when both are taken. Bodart out of the dust tells the story of a girl named billie jo, who struggles to help her family survive the dust bowl years of the depression. Its bleak and tragic and ends with only a glimmer of hope, but young and old readers will be moved as they root for fourteenyear old billie jo to transcend her dire circumstances and find the beauty in her unlikely. Ultimately, mad dog becomes yet another one of billie jo s friends who leaves the dust bowl to find better opportunities, going to amarillo to try to break into the music business on the radio. Billie jo is the one who names franklin after fdr, who was president at the time. Like the oklahoma dust bowl from which she came, 14yearold narrator billie jo writes in sparse, freefloating verse. Out of the dust tells the story of fourteenyearold girl billie jo, who must learn to navigate life in the midst of the 1930s dust bowl which has taken a toll on her small town in oklahoma. What i like best about her is louise doesnt say what i should do. The main character in out of the dust is a girl named billie jo. It is an incredibly emotional story told through poetry.
Billie jo is 14 years old when out of the dust begins. Out of the dust tells the story of fourteenyearold girl billie jo, who must learn to navigate life in the midst of the 1930s dust bowl which has taken a toll on her. Billie jo s love of the piano and music comes from her mother. In a series of poems, fifteenyear old billie jo relates the hardships of living on her familys wheat farm in oklahoma during the dust. Out of the dust karen hesse winner of the newbery medal beginning. Billie jo begins with how her father wants to have a son instead of a daughter, but how he loves her anyway, but treats her like the son he doesnt have, rough and tough. She lives near joyce city, oklahoma, located in the oklahoma panhandle, during the great depression of the 1930s, with her mother and father. Out of the dust scholastic gold newbery medal book. In karen hesses novel out of the dust, the narrator is billie joe kelby. Thats because it is not just about the dust bowl and how a family lives through it.
Her mother taught her how to play and her love of music helps billie jo get through the death of her mother and baby brother. In the midst of the dust bowl, with dust piling up like snow across the prairie, 14year old billie jo s life is transformed by a terrible accident. The phrase out of the dust appears several times in the book. She leaves home, but soon learns how much dust is a part of her. Billie jo loses her best friend, livvie, when livvies family moves to california to get away from the dust. When the novel begins, billie jo is making the best of her life despite the dust storms, depression, and drought. Out of the dust book arapahoe libraries bibliocommons.
She narrates, in unfolding glimpses of story, a tale of death, destruction, dust, and the search for redemption thats written in the firstperson, poetic, stanza form of virginia euwer wolffs make lemonade. At the start of the story, shes only thirteen years old, and decides to leave the barren dust bowl, only to regret it. At the beginning of the book, billie jo wishes that she could be closer to her. Acclaimed author karen hesses newbery medalwinning novelinverse explores the life of fourteenyear old billie jo growing up in the dust bowls of oklahoma. Billie jo accidentally through a pail of kerosene on her. Karen hesses awardwinning novel provides an unforgettable reading experience told in. Out of the dust is a verse novel by karen hesse, first published in 1997 summary.
Billie jo billie jo is a 14 year old girl living during the dust bowl. Meet billie jo kelby, a fourteenyearold girl living in cimarron county, oklahoma with her mom, a homemaker, and her dad, a farmer. Her experiences and actions cause her to change during the novel. We can almost feel the heat, dust, and wind as she struggles to survive a difficult time. Out of the dust sections 4 and 5 comprehension study guide by haleymartin56 includes 20 questions covering vocabulary, terms and more. Karen hesses awardwinning novel provides an unforgettable reading experience told. How old will billie jo be when her mother has the new baby. Despite the continual dust storms, billie jo and her parents struggle to make the best of a grim situation by living their lives as normally as possible. Billie jo lives with her father and pregnant mother. Billie jo is a talented pianist, but is reluctant to play after burns scar her hands. Study guide answers out of the dust by karen hesse. Like the oklahoma dust bowl from which she came, 14year old narrator billie jo writes in sparse, freefloating verse. Billy jo thought that hard times were about losing spirit, hope, and dreams.
The book is slow paced because of the poetic convention but this allows your feelings to develop and grow as you sympathize for the main character billie jo and her family. Daddys unwillingness to get treatment for his skin cancer, the growing failure of the farm due to the drought and dust, and watching more of her friends, like livie and mad. Out of the dust is a riveting, evocative and mournful story of the great depression. You must have done a lot of research about plants and farming in order to write out of the dust. Billie jo describes her desolate internal and external landscape with a searing, brutal honesty. Billie jo kelby is the strong and courageous protagonist, or main character, of the novel. Your descriptions of the wheat crops, mas apple trees, and mrs. Teaching the book in the midst of the dust bowl, with dust piling up like snow across the prairie, 14yearold billie jos life is transformed by a terrible accident. How does the title of the book reflect on billie jo as a person. Billie jo is partially responsiblefully responsible in the eyes of the communityand sustains injuries that seem to bring to a halt her dreams of playing the piano. What does billie jo do for comfort in out of the dust. Quizlet flashcards, activities and games help you improve your grades. Out of the dust is a verse novel by karen hesse, first published in 1997. August 1920 as summer wheat came ripe, so did i, born at home, on the kitchen floor.
Character analysis book summaries, test preparation. Her father being a farmer makes life harder, because of the lack of money. Imagine having the story told from another point of view or in third person. At one point billie jo wants to escape out of the dust, but later she says i cant get out of something that is inside me. Were talking tough, weathered, hardworking, and committedtimes may be challenging, but no matter how bad the drought gets, hes not willing to give up on his wheat crops. If billie jo has itchy feet early in the novel, this desire for another place gets kicked into overdrive after the accident. Madame butterfly and the art exhibit both remind billie jo that theres a whole wide world out there, and shes stuck in the land of dust and silent dinners with her dad.
A poem cycle that reads as a novel, out of the dust tells the story of a girl named billie jo, who struggles to help her family survive the dust bowl years of the depression. Karen hesses awardwinning novel provides an unforgettable reading experience told in free verse against the backdrop of. Out of the dust quotes showing 117 of 17 the way i see it, hard times arent only about money, or drought, or dust. While only a minor character in an early chapter in the book, billie jos best friend, livie. What is something that billie jo wants from her mother and esp her father. What are some of the things that billie jo misses about her mother. Out of the dust summary meet billie jo kelby, a fourteenyearold girl living in cimarron county, oklahoma with her mom, a homemaker, and her dad, a farmer. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. The book centers around billie jo, a 14year old girl, and her family. Karen hesses awardwinning novel provides an unforgettable reading experience told in free verse against the backdrop of a desperate time in american. Billie jo tells of her life in oklahoma during the dust bowl.
In out of the dust, how is billie jo emotional, musical, thoughtful. While theres peace in their small family, she hasnt exactly been living the dream. Billie jo kelby is a 14year old girl living in oklahoma during the dust bowl years. With his good looks, sultry crooning voice, and crowdpleasing personality, mad dog craddocks got everything it takes to become the 1930s version of michael buble. A terrible accident has transformed billie jo s life, scarring her inside and out. This book shows the power of persistence and strength through extremely tough conditions. Out of the dust study guide out of the dust by karen hesse. How old was billy jo when her brother was to be born. Out of the dust story characters flashcards quizlet. At the beginning of out of the dust, billie jo is 14 years old. Billie jo feels that this strains their relationship. Written by karen hesse, out of the dust is about a girl named billie jo and her life in the dust bowl, a region that includes parts of kansas, oklahoma, texas, new mexico, and colorado. Out of the dust tells the story of fourteenyear old girl billie jo, who must learn to navigate life in the midst of the 1930s dust bowl which has taken a toll on her small town in oklahoma. Out of the dust character analysis billie jo kelby she is 14 years old when the story begins, tall and slender, with red hair and freckles, and she loves apples.
How is billie jo s relationship with her father in the beginning of the book. Its bleak and tragic and ends with only a glimmer of hope, but young and old readers will be moved as they root for fourteenyear old billie jo to transcend her dire circumstances and find the beauty in. She narrates, in unfolding glimpses of story, a tale of death, destruction, dust, and the search for redemption thats written in the firstperson, poetic, stanza form of. Readers may find themselves enveloped in the same dark, choking dust that settles over billie jo and her father. While billie jo cites a lot of stuff she likes about louise, she tells us.
I came too fast for the doctor, bawling as soon as daddy wiped his hand around. Billie jo mentions more than once that she and her father dont know how to talk to each other. In a series of poems, fifteenyear old billie jo relates the hardships of living on her familys wheat farm in oklahoma during the dust bowl years of the depression. Blaming both herself and her father, she is unable to express herself through her piano playing because of the burns that scar her hands. Out of the dust by karen hesse paperback book the parent. Billie jo kelby is a 14yearold girl living in oklahoma during the dust bowl years. Bayard kelby, billie jos dad, is your textbook 1930s farmer. Meet billie jo kelby, a fourteenyear old girl living in cimarron county, oklahoma with her mom, a homemaker, and her dad, a farmer. Karen hesses ya novel narrows the focus of the catastrophic dust bowl in the southwest during the 1930s to a single family living in oklahoma. We know how billie jo changes because hesse narrates out of the dust in the first person, allowing billie jo to speak for herself. Billie jo and her father suffer multiple losses throughout the novel. Through a series of free verse poems the forlorn voice of fourteenyear old billie jo kelby takes the reader through grim domestic realities and constant dust storms.
I handed livie the memory book wed all filled with our. Ma crouched, barefoot, bare bottomed over the swept boards, because thats where daddy said itd be best. The entries in out of the dust are dated as if billie jo wrote them in a journal. Billie jo s complex relationship with both her parents is another significant part of her character.
Billie jo makes the point of saying that her mother was the one going between her and her father. Out of the dust sections 4 and 5 comprehension flashcards. Karen hesse is an author who chooses every word with care. Billie jo begins with how her father wants to have a son instead of a. She lives near joyce city, oklahoma, located in the oklahoma panhandle, during the great depression of. She just nods and i know shes heard everything i said.