Out of the Dust
by Karen Hesse
★ Top 25 book of 1997 · #15 on Best Books of 1997
After a terrible accident leaves her scarred and her mother gone, Billie Jo struggles through the Oklahoma dust bowl. Told as a series of poems, her story explores grief, a silent father, and the search for peace.
Best for: Teen readers who enjoy verse novels about loss, hardship, and Depression-era life
Out of the Dust is #15 on BookWard's Best Books of 1997, out of 27 1997 books that cleared our data bar.
What Out of the Dust is about
Billie Jo lives in the Oklahoma panhandle, where the Dust Bowl keeps crops from growing and makes food more expensive. Her father wanted a boy, and named her Billie Jo. She finds her freedom at the piano, playing alongside local musicians. Told in short poems dated from January 1934 to December 1935, the novel follows a year when one terrible accident changes her family and her own hands.
In the aftermath, Billie Jo and her father grow distant, each carrying grief and guilt in silence. She tries running away, and another woman, Louise, begins to matter to her father. The spare verse keeps the tone quiet and honest rather than sentimental. It is a Newbery Medal winner, well suited to young readers and anyone who likes a short book about hardship and slow healing.
Out of the Dust on the Best Books of 1997
Out of the Dust came out in 1997. Of the 27 books first published in 1997 that met BookWard's data bar, it ranks #15 on our Best Books of 1997 list.
Why it made the list: 180 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 4.1 out of 5 (16 ratings). The list ranks each year’s books on how many readers have picked them up, how highly readers rate them, and how many are reading them right now.
Nearby on the 1997 list
- A Walk in the Woods Bill Bryson, #13
- Sex and the City Candace Bushnell, #14
- Cat & Mouse James Patterson, #16
- The Partner John Grisham, #17
See all Best Books of 1997 Best books by year
More years: Best Books of 1996 Best Books of 1998.
The numbers behind it
- Readers: 138 want to read it, 19 are reading it now and 23 have read it, according to Open Library.
- Ratings: 4.1 out of 5 from 16 Open Library ratings.
| Signal | This book (0 to 100) | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Reach | 26 | 55% |
| Reader love | 74 | 25% |
| Being read right now | 52 | 20% |
Questions about Out of the Dust
When was Out of the Dust published?
Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse was first published in 1997.
Was Out of the Dust one of the best books of 1997?
Out of the Dust is #15 on BookWard's Best Books of 1997, out of 27 1997 books that cleared our data bar. 180 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 4.1 out of 5 (16 ratings).
Why is Out of the Dust on the Best Books of 1997 list?
180 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 4.1 out of 5 (16 ratings).
More of the best books of 1997
- Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone J. K. Rowling, #1
- Rich Dad, Poor Dad Robert T. Kiyosaki, #2
- Guns, Germs, and Steel Jared Diamond, #3
- The Adventures of Captain Underpants Dav Pilkey, #4
- The Power of Now Eckhart Tolle, #5
- Into Thin Air Jon Krakauer, #6
See the full Best Books of 1997, the Top 100, or new books on Rising.
How we know
This page uses public data: Open Library reader counts and ratings, and Wikipedia page views for recent years. The description is paraphrased from real source text. Rankings reflect reading interest, not quality or sales, and can be affected by data gaps. Lists update monthly.
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