A Cup of Dust

After watching a documentary on the Dust Bowl, I have become very interested in it. While nothing like what these individuals experienced, I remember growing up in East Texas as a child and the small dust storms there. I can recall the grit in our home and between my teeth. I haven’t forgotten the sting of the sand as it hit my legs. As an adult I experienced a dust storm here in Oklahoma, where the sky was darkened, and the air so thick I felt I would suffocate. These small events in my life have me in awe of what the people of this era dealt with, and not for a few days but for years. This book made me realize how incredibly courageous and resilient dust bowl families were.
Instead of this part of history being told through the eyes show more of an adult, the author does it through the eyes of 10 year old Pearl Spence. A child’s view is very simple, but it is also glaringly honest. Although Pearl does not understand everything she sees and experiences, her account is authentically candid.
So vivid are the descriptions of life in this Oklahoma town that I could feel the discouragement and desperation of the characters. Her mother’s constant battle to keep her home clean and maintain a normal family life was heartrending. It is clear the large role adult’s attitudes and actions play in how a child handles a crisis. Pearl’s grandmother, mother, and father were an anchor for her in this unsettled time.
I better understood the despair and fear of never knowing when another dust storm would strike or when the nightmare would end. The author was brilliant with the way she took amazing historical details, brought to life powerful characters, and then created a story filled with danger, mystery, and excitement. A fantastic read! show less

It’s Oklahoma in the mid-1930s and life is a day-to-day struggle for people caught in the dust bowl. Pearl is just 10 years old but she has seen desperation and despair in too many eyes, and it seems like life just keeps getting worse. She has it better than some: her father is the sheriff, and he has an income and they have enough food. But her neighbors and friends are not so lucky, and misery and desolation push them to the limits of their endurance. Some leave, some are left alone, some are starving, and to some, even worse tragedies occur. A hobo appears in the town, and Pearl’s life will never be the same. Long- kept secrets finally work their way to the surface. People hope for an end to the dust that never ends. Danger lurks show more in the shadows. Though the author weaves a compelling story peopled with realistic characters in an impossible yet true situation, the most engrossing character in this novel is the dust. It takes on a life of its own, sifting in the tiniest cracks, covering steps and homes and more, encroaching on everything till all you feel is grit. The images in this story are so descriptive that it seems as though you were there, experiencing the deplorable dust that no amount of cleaning could ever got rid of. This coming-of-age tale is harrowing and suspenseful, and the familial relationships of Pearl’s family illustrate the life they lived with poignancy and tenderness contrasting with the harsh surroundings which they endured. show less

Susie Finkbeiner has been a long time student of the Depression-era history of the Dust Bowl, an ecological and economic disaster that decimated the Great Plains. Her passion for the subject is manifested in her poignant novel, A Cup of Dust. This literary gem is a highly recommended read!

The year is 1934 and the setting is Red River, Oklahoma, a panhandle town that is slowly fading off the map. Ten year old Pearl Spence tells the story of her family and town as they struggle to survive amidst despair and the ever present dust. But Pearl soon realizes there is much more going on in the town and her family than she knows, and the truth that hides beneath the surface will change her life forever.

Finkbeiner wrote A Cup of Dust after years show more of study and research. What began as an interest in her teens, has resulted in a beautifully told story. This well-researched novel made me feel like I was in the midst of the story — I could almost feel the grit on my skin and see the tan destruction of the dust that covers the town of Red River. All senses are engaged while reading this book. The history depicted in the book is compelling and caused me to head to the computer over and over again. Well-drawn characters touch the heart and, for a time, become part of the reader’s life. I was completely pulled into Pearl’s story, feeling the anxiety of a world so different from her daydreams and fairy tale stories. Pearl is a little girl with the little girl desires of a store-bought dress and a candy treat. Yet she is forced into a confusing adult world in spite of her parent’s efforts to shield her from hurt and danger. Other characters are equally compelling, and I am hoping that Finkbeiner will revisit Red River soon. Pearl’s understanding of faith comes from her Meemaw’s love and reliance on God’s grace, the preacher’s continuous message of God’s wrath and judgment and her father’s quiet faithfulness — Daddy’s was a simple faith. He lived it with easy words and the sweat of his brow. I believed God loved that well enough.

If you are looking for a compelling story with a message of hope in the midst of a dark time and characters that will live on in your imagination, then you need to get A Cup of Dust.

Highly Recommended.

Audience: older teens and adults.

(Thanks to Kregel for a review copy. All opinions expressed are mine alone.) show less

.A Cup of Dust: A Novel of the Dust Bowl, by local West Michigan author Susie Finkbeiner was the most depressing book I have ever read. That said, I would still recommend it. The story is very well written and it is obvious the author spent a lot of time researching this time in American history.
This is more than a story of life during the Depression of the 1930's. It is about life in a dying, dried up, dust-filled town in Oklahoma, inhabited by strong (and weak) survivors.
As sad as the story was, I couldn't put the book down. And when I wasn't reading it, I was thinking about it; wondering when the happy part would start and just hoping it would have a happy or at least a satisfying ending.
I received this copy of 'A Cup of Dust: A show more Novel of the Dust Bowl', by Susie Finkbeiner from the October 2015 LibraryThing Early Reviewers giveaway show less

Wonderful, Compelling Story of Dust Bowl from Faith Viewpoint...

"What I did see outside was Red River streets, lined by boarded-up buildings and dead dreams. Ruined fields and falling apart lives." This observation by Suzie Finkbeiner's 10 year old protagonist, Pearl Spence, leads her to the ultimate question, where is God in the bad times? She asks her Meemaw,"Is God in Oklahoma?...Or did He leave?"

Finkbeiner populates her story with a variety of characters who would each answer the question differently. The preacher loudly screams at the congregation to repent, because God has brought this disaster upon them, as a result of the farmers being proud of their wheat crops of years gone by. The sheriff, according to Pearl, has a quiet show more faith, but steady and firm. (I would personally question the faith of someone who never felt the need to be in the presence of God's people, but then and again, I wouldn't want the faith of the preacher, who seemed very two-faced.) Mama seemed to have faith, and showed it by her generosity in caring for others. Yet it was Meemaw's quiet faith that drew Pearl, that was loving, reassuring, and lent an air of confidence that indeed God knew and cared what happened to His people.

Another big theme of the book is family. What is family, how does it influence one? Is environment more important than heredity? Environment makes a HUGE difference many times in a person's life. However, I found I wanted to disagree on some level with Finkbeiner's statement:"The world was full of awful people who did terrible and ugly things. Most of them were only awful because of the scars on their hearts." The Bible says in Jeremiah that "the heart is deceitful and desperately wicked." We don't necessarily need any bad examples to be bad, unfortunately.

The cover is perfect for this book. Unlike the Grapes of Wrath, which seemed to be totally hopeless, this novel had many hopeless parts, but through it all, the hope was presented that God could deliver. On the front cover of A Cup of Dust, the colors are mostly brown. A small rainbow of light pierces the dust to allow a narrow arc of color, just as the Spence family fought to hold onto a narrow hope that God would in fact, deliver them.

Due to adult situations and subject matter, I would rate this book a PG-13. Best for upper high school and above.

I had the pleasure of reading this book provided to me though bookfun.org in exchange for an honest review. show less

I had heard a lot about this book. It was very well publicized in bookstores and social networks. When I received notice that I would be reading this book, I was beyond excitement. This story captured the long ago memories of my granddad who had a farm in the Oklahoma Panhandle. I would spend two weeks every summer there as I explored his two-hundred acres. This story helped remind me of a great childhood memory.

Pearl is a curious ten year old who seems wiser than her years. Her dad is the local sheriff and is a hero to many. Everyone knows her family and respects them. Pearl has a best friend named Ray. They go everywhere together as they explore the town and share their thoughts. I remember there being lots of jackrabbits on my grand show more dad's farm and of course seeing one all fried up and ready to eat at the dinner table. I was never able to eat one. The author wrote a very vivid account of what people use to do to rid the farms of the pesky critters. Pearl had tears streaming down her face as she witnessed this event and gave her such an innocence that I could actually visualize her openly grieving for the animals. The author does an amazing job of describing this time period with honesty and realism. Some may not care for the vivid details, but without them the true understanding of this era would be lost.

There is a strange man that has come to Pearl's town. He sure does seem to know her. Who is this man? Will he be a danger to Peal? The story is so mesmerizing , that I picture myself at Pearl's house surrounded by her loving family. They live a simple life with a strong family bond. The dust storms were fierce and seemed to cover the town like a dome. It was hard for people to breathe in the dust storm and the preacher of the town said, "It's the wrath of God Almighty pouring down on us. " We best get on our knees and beg God to take us back. Beg Him to forgive our sins and to take us back." The preacher is a great character written with strong convictions and a bit of a dramatic flair. Can you imagine sitting there listening to the preacher shouting at the top of his lungs that we all need to repent?

There are so many interesting characters in the book and such outstanding writing that I could not put this book down. I must say I was very intrigued with who this man named Eddie was. Why did he appear out of nowhere and seem to follow Pearl? There is a deep secret that will soon turn many lives upside down. There is a storm brewing in the town . Is it another dust storm or something hidden for many years that will cause Pearl much hurt and a sense of being lost and unloved?

I am completely overwhelmed by the intricate writing of this story. Be ready to be swept back to a time period that was hard to live in with struggles to keep food on the table, dust storms that literally take your breath away and characters so real, you feel as if you are watching a show from "Little House on the Prairie." I am now a huge fan of this author. I will anxiously be waiting for another book from her.

I received a copy of this book from The BookClub Network for an honest review. show less

I like the Great Depression Era and was looking forward to reading A Cup of Dust. Author Susie Finkbeiner does not disappoint. I was fully absorbed in the plot and the characters. She made the characters seem very real. I felt very deeply for the things Pearl experienced and wanted to give her a big hug, if that were possible. The mystery portions were slightly predictable, but held my interest to the end. I stayed up too late to finish the ending.