The choice to use more pictures than words in the work make it much more of a sensual experience for me. From the photos, I could feel rub of dust on my hands and neck, and imagined the broiling hot sun beating down on my back. Factual and semi-stoic narrations separated the fact from the fiction, however the quotes from inhabitants of the area brought the entire act into perspective. The Dust Bowl is painful for many to remember, but Martin Sandler creates an atmosphere such that the pain is still there, but knowledge still takes the upper hand. Although this was my first "Through the Lens" experience, it will most certainly not be my last; to use the old cliche, "I laughed, I cried." I strongly recommend this book to high school students, as well as adults. Although it is extremely factual, it is certain that no reader will be bored.