Random House Children’s, 2012
ISBN: 0375869387
Available: hardcover & multiformat ebook
Callie lives with her mom in a grand old hotel in the middle of the Dust Bowl and has spent the last years watching it, and their town, slowly blow away with the wind. If this life wasn’t difficult enough Callie has a dark secret—she’s half black. Her dad is a jazz musician who promised to come back for her mother someday. Or so Callie thinks. Then in the middle of a giant dust storm Callie’s mother reveals the truth, he dad isn’t human at all. He’s a fae prince. Callie’s anger at her father’s abandonment fuels the storm around them and her mom disappears, taken by fae who want to come for Callie as well. Because neither court is terribly happy about Callie’s existence.
Dust Girl is a fantastic period fantasy tale. It will appeal to lovers of classical fairy tales (the old Grimm types, not the Disney re-makes). The blending of Depression-era conflict with tricky fairy prophecies is enchanting. Highly recommended.