All the Earth, Thrown to the Sky

Gr 6—9—Jack buries his parents in the barn during a Depression-era Oklahoma dust storm. Mama succumbed to dirty pneumonia and his father, overcome by grief, has hung himself. Jack's spunky neighbor Jane and her younger brother, Tony, also recently orphaned, stumble in from a dust storm that buried their father. The three steal a Ford and set out to seek the siblings' aunt and uncle in East Texas. The body count rises as they encounter gangsters, railyard bulls, and a crooked sheriff on one hand and kindly folks such as Pretty Boy Floyd, Mrs. Carson, Junior, and carnival performers on the other. A plague of grasshoppers, an alligator, and even the local police (conveniently) play their parts in this tale that balances the bleak bits with Jane's smart banter, a warm first (and second and third) kiss, and an ending that leaves Jack hopeful for a brighter tomorrow. Despite the convenient plot devices, this is a fast-paced, exciting story in which historical details are smoothly incorporated, characters are quickly but effectively sketched, and the author's Twain-like twang delivers both ironic and situational humor that will leave readers chuckling.—Joel Shoemaker, formerly at South East Junior High School, Iowa City, IA