Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse

Under the genre of historical fiction and children’s literature, Out of the Dust is a verse novel written by Karen Hesse and published in 1997. The novel follows a storyline that happens during The Great Depression, in which a young girl named Billie Jo tries to help her family survive during the dust-bowl years. Billie Jo suffers a terrible loss, and the after-effects were not so good either. Read to find out whether Billie Jo will ever have her hands heal and be able to play the piano again. If you like poetry and quick reads, you should like this verse novel, which is a Newberry Medal winner and a beloved novel.