The Dust Bowl

I am posting this picture by Dorthea Lange in order to set the context of the book Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse. The Dust Bowl occurred in the 1930s during the Great Depression. It damaged agriculture and left several families hungry such as the family pictured above who only survived off from frozen vegetables and birds that the mother's two boys killed. What do you notice about the mother's appearance? After having seen this picture, I encourage you to read the newspaper clippings in order to learn more about the hardships that these people endured. Next, compare the picture and newspaper clippings. What textual evidence from the newspaper clippings supports your interpretation of the picture above?

Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse

Karen Hesse is well known for writing her book Out of the Dust. This historical fiction book took place during the Great Depression in Oklahoma. This time period was considered the Dust Bowl because of the large amounts of dust that was created from the farm land and the drought. The main character in Out of the Dust is Billie Jo, a 14 year old small town farm girl that enjoys apples and loves to play the piano. With the dust causing trouble on the farm, tragedy strikes. Billie Jo is forced to live with the consequences of the Dust Bowl. Can she overcome the hardships? Find out by reading the book! You can purchase it online by clicking on the following link: Out of the Dust