The bookworm says..........Yes! Out Of The Dust by Karen Hesse was indeed a great book. I wouldn't even think of reading this but I had an MCAS selection that was two poems from the book. Billie Jo wants nothing more in life than to get out of the dust. She lives in the dust bowl with her dad Bay, and her momma. Billie Jo has one special connection to her mama. They both play the piano. Real good. But one day there is an accident. Bay accidentally leaves a pail of kerosene near the stove. Ma mistakes it for coffee. That's where it all goes wrong. Ma gets burnt real bad. Billie Jo goes to throw the burning kerosene outside after her mama runs out, not knowing she is coming back in. The fire burns mama and the baby and they both die. Billie Jo tries to put the fire out and burns her hands. Now she cant even play the piano. Billie Jo struggles and just cant get out of the dust. When she does, she runs back for her father because she is so lonely. This book was great. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes poetry seeing as the whole book is poems.