SuitabookDixie Storms
Barbara Hall
- Reading
- Read together in manageable stretches, pausing when family disagreements arise. Invite your child to consider how each person’s point of view shapes a conflict, without needing to settle who is right.
- Themes
- Dutch’s changing perspective: Dutch narrates a summer in which Norma’s visit introduces new ideas about love and life, while Dutch considers her feelings for a classmate and her place in the family. The first-person account keeps Dutch’s feelings and outlook at the centre as they change over the summer.
- Worth knowing
- Family strain includes resentment, conflict over responsibilities and difficult relationships involving a child and his parents. The drought also threatens the family’s crop and morale.