Billie Jo Quotes

In the historical fiction novel Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse, the central character Billie Jo faces many adversities that could have crushed her hopes, dreams and spirit. The author Karen Hesse, states, “the way I see it, hard times aren’t only about money, or drought, or dust. .Hard times are about losing spirit, and hope, and what happens when dreams dry up.” This quote means that the way the author sees it, the hard times in Billie Jo’s life aren’t always on the surface, as she faced losing her sense of self, her optimism, and her goals she wished to achieve. Billie Jo is confronted with the challenges of her strained relationship with her father, as well as guilt over her mother’s death, yet she is able to hold onto her spirit, hopes,

Despite the ache in her heart that her mother’s death left her with, Billie Jo conquered her pain and continued to play the piano. Despite the physical hurt it caused her hands and the emotional pain it causes her as it remind her of her mother Billie Jo persisted and didn’t give up on her dreams of piano playing. Such as when Billie Jo thinks, “I play songs that have only the pattern of myself in them and you hum along supporting me. You are the companion to myself. The mirror with my mother’s eyes,”(194.). To Billie Jo, a piano symbolized her mother and everything her mother was to her, but she rebuilt herself and continued to play and by the end of the novel Billie Jo is playing at home once again. After running away Billie Jo also realized how much her father still meant to her. Despite all the pain he has caused her, she reconnects with him and together they rebuild their relationship into one where they both know they still love and care for the other. For example, when Billie Jo returns she thinks, “as we walk together, side by side, in the swell of dust, I am forgiving him, step by step, for the pail of kerosene. As we walk together, side by side, in the sole-deep dust, I am forgiving myself for all the rest,” (206). Billie Jo is forgiving her father and forgiving herself, as they patch up themselves and each other and grow stronger together. Through strength of

Karen Hesse stated that, “the way I see it, hard times aren’t only about money, or drought, or dust. Hard times are about losing spirit, and hope, and what happens when dreams dry up.” But she is wrong about Billie Jo who holds onto her sense of self as well as optimism and admirations. Many farmers in this time left and never returned, as they gave up on their hopes, but Billie Jo did return after running away as she realized that she still had hope.. Readers can learn from Billie Jo, that you can recover, and rebuild after difficult