Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly
"Richly, heartbreakingly human" characters, said PW, populate this stirring Newbery Honor book about 13-year-old Pete, who yearns for religious fulfillment and seems to find it in Preacher Man, a traveling evangelist. Ages 11-13. (Mar.)
From the Publisher
"Powerful."
New York Times Book Review
"Poignant and perceptive."
— Booklist, starred review
"Simply but beautifully written...a tale with enough suspense to hold readers till the end."
— Kirkus Reviews, starred review
APRIL 2009 - AudioFile
A FINE WHITE DUST is one of Rylant's older, lesser-known works, resurrected for this audio production. Thirteen-year-old Pete is "best friends with an atheist," and his parents are only "half-washed Christians," but he has a religious "itch" that needs scratchin'. It's the summer the Preacher Man arrives in his small town for a series of revival meetings. Keith Nobbs tells Pete's story with the exaggerated, enthusiastic lilt of a revivalist preacher as Pete finds a balm for his itch. Nobbs fills Pete’s voice with awe as he attempts to make sense of "being saved" and comes to terms with the value of faith, friends, and family. N.E.M. © AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine
