Wonderful book for ages 9 and up. Maybe a future award winner? Rose is on the high end of the autism spectrum. She lives in a rural area with her father, no mother, and a kind uncle that visits a lot. She is obsessed with homonyms (thus the title) and the author inserts these seamlessly in sentences throughout the book until you find yourself catching them before you even read them and looking for them in your own life. Rose has no friends and is an outcast. She has a one-on-one aide that accompanies her at school. After criticizing the bus driver for not driving correctly, she is no longer allowed to ride the bus. Her father brings home a stray dog and she names it- a homonym- Rain. She is starting to relate a bit more to her classmates and have some happier days when a hurricane hits and Rain gets lost in the storm and doesn’t come home. An extraordinary girl with a cruel/trying-with-limited-resources-father, Rain makes an amazing, mature decision that will leave readers impressed and hopeful for her future. A winner.
