Where Only Storms Grow: Chapters 1–2

by Alyssa Colman
The Stanton twins, Howe and Joanna, live in the Oklahoma panhandle during the devastating 1930s Dust Bowl event. In the midst of unprecedented and unrelenting dust storms, Joanna and Howe must work together to save their family farm and the whole community.

Here are links to our lists for the book: Chapters 1–2, Chapters 3–8, Chapters 9–12, Chapters 13–30, Chapters 31–46
15 words 34 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. loathsome
    highly offensive; arousing aversion or disgust
    Careful as I could, I extracted my ankle from the tumbleweed’s clutches. The loathsome thing rolled away into the blackness.
  2. linoleum
    a floor covering made from linseed oil, cork, and resin
    “Use the rag, not your fingernail, Joanna.” Mama paused sweeping the linoleum. She had an inch of dirt in the dustpan—the third one she’d swept out since last night’s storm.
  3. scoliosis
    an abnormal lateral curve of the spine
    As far as I knew, nothing helped the scoliosis that made my spine crooked, my shoulders and hips uneven, and left me in constant pain.
  4. panhandle
    a narrow strip of land projecting from a larger area
    It was mighty chilly out, yet still warmer than it ought to have been for mid-January on the Oklahoma panhandle.
  5. lethargic
    deficient in alertness or activity
    Four scrawny cows, all that was left of our herd, watched from the dirt-strewn pasture. Ignoring the stares, I dodged a handful of lethargic chickens pecking in the yard and rounded the house in search of the bluebird.
  6. threadbare
    thin and tattered with age
    The threadbare knees of my overalls strained almost to bursting as I crouched down.
  7. belie
    be in contradiction with
    He scooped up the bluebird with a gentleness that belied his rough farmer’s hands.
  8. piebald
    having sections or patches colored differently and brightly
    Inside the barn, Daddy’s brown-and-white piebald mare, Pie, stuck her head out of her stall to see what we were up to.
  9. stifling
    causing one to feel inhibited or oppressed
    “Jo, you need to mend things with your mama. She does what she does because she loves you.”
    “Yes, sir,” I said without conviction. Sometimes her love felt more stifling than the dust.
  10. sternum
    the breastbone
    The butter-yellow walls of the seventh-and-eighth-grade classroom weren’t postcard-worthy, yet a knot of tension melted away from my sternum as we entered the room.
  11. depression
    a long-term economic state with unemployment and low prices
    President Hoover had been in charge when the banks began to fail and the country slid into this national depression, with hundreds of thousands of people out of work.
  12. sonnet
    a verse form of 14 lines with a fixed rhyme scheme
    “Today we’re starting a new unit on poetry. I thought we’d begin with one of my favorite sonnets by William Shakespeare. As I read, pay attention to the rhythm along with the words.”
  13. anticipation
    expecting with confidence of fulfillment
    The class settled into quiet anticipation. Miss Landis always picked something good.
  14. reverent
    feeling or showing profound respect or veneration
    There was a reverent hush while we all returned from where the poem had transported us.
  15. free verse
    poetry that does not rhyme or have a regular meter
    “Some poems are free verse and some, like sonnets, are more structured. What Howe picked up on is called ‘iambic pentameter.’ It’s the framework of a sonnet.”
Created on Sat Mar 07 19:41:34 EST 2026 (updated Tue Apr 21 12:12:56 EDT 2026)

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