Rain Reign

By: Ann M. Martin

Narrated by: Laura Hamilton

Rose Howard has OCD, Asperger's syndrome, and an obsession with homonyms (even her name is a homonym). She gave her dog Rain a name with two homonyms (Reign, Rein), which, according to Rose's rules of homonyms, is very special. Rain was a lost dog Rose's father brought home. Rose and Rain are practically inseparable. And they are often home alone, as Rose's father spends most evenings at a bar, and doesn't have much patience for his special-needs daughter.

Just as a storm hits town, Rain goes missing. Rose's father shouldn't have let Rain out. Now Rose has to find her dog, even if it means leaving her routines and safe places to search. Rose will find Rain, but so will Rain's original owners.

Hearts will break and spirits will soar for this powerful story, brilliantly told from Rose's point of view.

©2014 Ann M. Martin (P)2014 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved.

Tearjerker!

Tear - tier. Now I like homonyms.
Beautiful but sad story. Real tearjerker. Great narration, thanx audible!

Dealing with the autistic child

A little goes a long way with this one. The main character lives life using repetition of homonyms as a means of coping. I get it. I've worked with autistic kids. But every time the story encounters a homonym (e.g., rain and reign, and also, rein...they are spelled out, which makes the story really drag). The girl at the center is well depicted and the narration is very good. But. I confess I "advanced" the book to skip huge swaths, and I still got the feel of the characters and the drift of the book.

Amateurish

Read Mark Haddon's "The Curious Incident of the Dog at Nighttime" instead. Much richer and more complex. Rain Reign has an idealized take on Asperger's. Please, for real, show me a kid with HFA who gets their homework done and fixes dinner every afternoon unsupervised plus can think on their feet enough to pack up all of their belongings upon inferring that they were being abandoned.

Sweet story

I bought this book when it went on sale. It had been in my wish list for awhile and I had just never gotten around to purchasing it. I'm glad I finally gave it a listen.
I found this to be a very sweet story. However, if you are unfamiliar with autism and related behaviors, this might be a difficult listen at times as it is told from the perspective of Rose who has a she puts it "a diagnosis of high functioning autism". I don't want to spoil any parts of the story so I will leave it at that.
It's a quick listen, but narrated beautifully. I recommend it based on its originality and because it was quite touching.

Genuine and touching

Thoughtful narration brings this tale (tail) to life in a way (weigh) that I likely would not (knot) have appreciated if I had read the book.