I've just been reading some posts about how terrible the drought is in Oklahoma and Texas this year, and it reminded of John Steinbeck's story about the family dislocated from Oklahoma (I think it was..).. and all their efforts to find jobs. The "dust bowl" era story made such a deep impression on me when I was young, and I told everybody I knew to read this book..

I do so hope history isn't repeating itself.......

Some where I heard that this drought was actually worse than the "dust bowl" years.

Due to the improved farming techniques and the awareness of farmers of the importance of soil conservation, we don't have the dust blowing like during the dust bowl era. However, the lack of rain is greater than at the beginning of and during the dust bowl.

My parents indured the dust bowl in Oklahoma but I don't remember them ever mentioning the weather being hot. They did move to California in 1934.

My husband, being a farmer in country that still bears scars from that era, is very interested in the Dust Bowl and how it compares to today. Basically, we have had MUCH less rain this year than in any time during the dust bowl years, but because farmers know how to manage the land better, and there is more irrigation, the impact is much lower.

I have always loved that book and try to read it ar least once a year to remind myself just how good I have it now in this generation and to quit whining about the things I dont have and just enjoy my family
God bless our farmers they are way to much under appreciated

That's interesting. I had wondered how we were escaping a repeat of the dust bowl years.

I feel so bad for everyone affected.
Love John Steinbeck- in my opinion he was one of the greatest writers of the 20th century :)

To learn about the dust bowl you should read "The Worst Hard Time: The Untold Story of Those Who Survived the Great American Dust Bowl" by Timothy Egan.

One of the Amazon reviewers said this "Beyond a doubt, this was the best of the books I read during this past year. Having had many family members who were caught up in this, one of the worst natural (actually it seems it was more man made than natural) disasters to strike our country, made this work of even more interest to me. Mr. Eagan has not only given us a wonderful account of this era in our nations history, he has made it come alive through his exceptional story telling abilities. This is not a dry (no pun intended), academic history of the great depression. Rather it is a history of a group of people who lived through the worst of it, the great dust bowl at the center of our country. These are real people and the author treats them as such. Very few meaningless statistics mar the story line, few government reports are offered or cited to reduce the human suffering to neatly typed pieces of paper. As you read this book, you come to realize that these people are just like you and me. You read and ponder "what if?" The book is quite readable, quite informative and one that I will no doubt give a reread to in the near future. Recommend this one highly!"

I am in Wichita Falls, TX, and we have had 65 days of over 100 degrees, with one day in the middle of 99 degrees. Everything is dead, ponds have dried up....it is not the dust bowl, but ranchers have nothing to feed their animals and are selling them. There is no local hay to be had...too dry to grow any. Actually, most of our days have been 108. It was 111 today.

Would you believe that everyone was grumpy?? If I didn't have quilting, I would be going crazy!! I've made 4 quilts in two months....a record for me.