Synopses & Reviews
Tall tale. Thriller. Gripping historical fiction. This artful, sparely told graphic novel — a tale of a boy in Dust Bowl America — will resonate with young readers today.
In Kansas in the year 1937, eleven-year-old Jack Clark faces his share of ordinary challenges: local bullies, his father's failed expectations, a little sister with an eye for trouble. But he also has to deal with the effects of the Dust Bowl, including rising tensions in his small town and the spread of a shadowy illness. Certainly a case of dust dementia would explain who (or what) Jack has glimpsed in the Talbot's abandoned barn — a sinister figure with a face like rain. In a land where it never rains, it's hard to trust what you see with your own eyes — and harder still to take heart and be a hero when the time comes. With phenomenal pacing, sensitivity, and a sure command of suspense, Matt Phelan ushers us into a world where desperation is transformed by unexpected courage.
Review
"Author/illustrator Phelan's first graphic tale is part historical mystery, part fantasy thriller.... This is not to be missed." Kirkus Reviews
Review
"]Phelan]presents an empowering message that all a child needs to change the world is courage and ingenuity. Great for a wide range of readers." Booklist
Review
"Written with simple, direct language, it's an almost wordless book: the illustrations' shadowy grays and blurry lines eloquently depict the haze of the dust. A complex but accessible and fascinating book." School Library Journal
Synopsis
With phenomenal pacing, sensitivity, and a sure command of suspense, Phelan ushers readers into Dust Bowl-era America to tell the story of a young boy who is transformed by unexpected courage. Winner of the Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction, 2010.
Synopsis
Don Brown brings the Dirty Thirties to life in this gripping graphic novel account of one of America's most catastrophic natural events: The Dust Bowl.
Synopsis
A speck of dust is a tiny thing. In fact, five of them could fit into the period at the end of this sentence.
On a clear, warm Sunday, April 14, 1935, a wild wind whipped up millions upon millions of these specks of dust to form a dusterand#8212;a savage stormand#8212;on America's high southern plains.
The sky turned black, sand-filled winds scoured the paint off houses and cars, trains derailed, and electricity coursed through the air. Sand and dirt fell like snowand#8212;people got lost in the gloom and suffocated . . . and that was just the beginning.
Don Brown brings the Dirty Thirties to life with kinetic, highly saturated, and lively artwork in this graphic novel of one of America's most catastrophic natural events: the Dust Bowl.
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About the Author
Matt Phelan is the illustrator of many books for young readers, including Always by Ann Stott and The Higher Power of Lucky by Susan Patron, winner of the 2007 Newbery Medal. The Storm in the Barn is his first graphic novel. He lives in Philadelphia.