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    Rain Reign
    Rain Reign
    Rain Reign
    Ebook174 pages2 hours

    Rain Reign

    By Ann M Martin

    4.5/5

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    About this ebook

    Rose Howard is obsessed with homonyms. She's thrilled that her own name is a homonym, and she purposely gave her dog Rain a name with two homonyms (Reign, Rein), which, according to Rose's rules of homonyms, is very special. Not everyone understands Rose's obsessions, her rules, and the other things that make her different – not her teachers, not other kids, and not her single father.

    When a storm hits their rural town, rivers overflow, the roads are flooded, and 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.
    Hearts will break and spirits will soar for this powerful story, brilliantly told from Rose's point of view.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherMacmillan Publishers
    Release dateOct 7, 2014
    ISBN9781250064233
    Author

    Ann M Martin

    Ann M. Martin grew up in Princeton, New Jersey. After attending Smith College, where she studied education and psychology, she became a teacher at a small elementary school in Connecticut. Martin also worked as an editor of children’s books before she began writing full time. Martin is best known for the Baby-Sitters Club series, which has sold over one hundred seventy million copies. Her novel A Corner of the Universe won a Newbery Honor in 2003. In 1990, she cofounded the Lisa Libraries, which donates new children’s books to organizations in underserved areas. Martin lives in upstate New York with her three cats.

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    Reviews for Rain Reign

    4.5/5

    33 ratings38 reviews

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    • 5/5
      Spot on book about a girl with high functioning autism who lives alone with her father and her dog. Her uncle is a very supportive adult in her life. Written from the girl's point of view, She is extremely interested in homonyms (rain, reign), rules and prime numbers. Her father is clearly overwhelmed. It's amazing to me how all of this is knitted together to create a compelling, touching, and completely whole story.
    • 5/5
      A girl who loves words and rules.A dog who is loyal and true.The hurricane that comes between them.Rose Howard and Rain are inseparable. Rain is named rain because she arrived in the rain, but mostly for Rose's homophone obsession: Rain = Reign = Rein. And a triple homophone name is extra special according to Rose's rules.When Rose gets anxious, Rain listens. Rain does not fault Rose when the homophones overwhelm her speech, when Rose's classmates and single father make fun or get mad. Yet with the help of Rain and her understanding Uncle Weldon, Rose begins to control her obsessions. Then Hurricane Susan roars into their East coast town and Rain disappears. Now it's Rose's turn to help Rain. Rose's passion for rules and structure allows her to devise a plan to find her dearest companion. But will Rose be able to overcome her fears and carry out that plan? Rose's bravery and honest voice will have readers cheering and on edge in this compelling story.
    • 4/5
      Ein sehr schönes ergreifendes Jugendbuch über ein autistisches Mädchen.
    • 5/5
      This book was wonderful. Rose's character is so complex. The intricacies of Aspurger's are evident within Rose, but the uniqueness of who Rose is despite her diagnoses also shines through. This would be a great book for teaching students about exceptionalities and Autism Spectrum Disorder. Ultimately, the greatest lesson from the book is to be who you are and don't let anyone tell you that who you are is any less than wonderful.
    • 5/5
      First off, no dogs die in this book. But it does still have a bittersweet ending. There may have been tears.I've read a few books about kids with autism, but this is the first kid's book I've read written from the perspective of the child with autism rather than from a friend or family member. Martin gets us into Rose's head, and through the course of the novel we come to understand why she thinks and process the way she does. Like Rose's beloved homonyms, this book is about duality, about being able to hold two diverging perspectives in your head at once. Through reading Rose's account we see and understand why she gets upset over things like rule breaking while simultaneously knowing that the rules being broken are incredibly mild, almost insignificant. We can see why her father gets so frustrated with her while also recognizing that his lack of understanding makes him a worse parent. We see all the places he falls short as a father, but also see how hard he is trying to be a good father to Rose and a better man than his own father. This gives the novel a depth I wasn't expecting but was glad to find.Martin-as-Rose's writing style is composed mainly of short, choppy sentences, the kind I see out of my struggling students. But rather than making the prose feel clunky, this works. Martin blends in enough flow that we get Rose's to-the-point personality without being driven crazy. I also thought the constant peppering of homonyms would bug me, but it didn't.Would pair well with Wonder, Rules, Out of My Mind.
    • 5/5
      I absolutely loved this book. Rose is a young girl with high functioning autism, or Asperger's. She is obsessed with rule following and homophones, which most of us call homonyms. Rain is her dog, and rain/reign are homophones, and Rose has an aide that sits with her in class and reminds Rose when it is time to "step out into the hall" to calm down. Rose adores her dog, until one day, during a "superstorm" Rain gets lost. Rose sets a course to find her, and when she discovers her in a pet shelter miles away, Rose discovers she has to make a serious decision to do the right thing. My heart aches for young Rose and her sweet, simple outlook on life.
    • 5/5
      I must say I truly enjoyed reading Rose's story and her love of words, specifically homonyms. Rose has many obsessions homonyms, rules and routines and not everyone understands these rules including her single father. Her father brings a dog home for Rose in the hopes it will help to keep Rose calm, which it does but Rose in the back of her mind questions if the dog belongs to someone else who might be missing her.

      This is not your usual dog story, but it is a story of making the right choices even when they are hard and they may hurt. Martin does a wonderful job showing us a child with Asperger's is just a child with unique qualities that may take some extra patience to understand.

      Well worth the read and highly recommend for all ages. This book was on the Indie Kids list and was recommended to me by one of the wonderful ladies at Blue Willow Bookshop and it was our March Pick for ILE Reads Young Adult Bookshop.
    • 5/5
      A wonderful, but sometimes difficult read.
    • 4/5
      Narrated by Laura Hamilton. Hamilton does a great job presenting autistic Rose Howard's story and generating the listener's sense of compassion for Rose. When Rose compulsively recites homonyms, Hamilton does so with a robotic urgency that gives an idea of what having autism is like. And when Rose calls out infractions of rules, you feel the annoyance of her father, teachers and classmates. Her uncle Weldon is far more accommodating and nurturing of Rose than her impatient, surly father. The reunion at the pet shelter is a weeper! A great audio version of a powerful and revealing story.
    • 5/5
      This is a wonderful book about autism and crisis parenting and I guess I could say the crises of childhood. Listening to the audiobook made it even more clear how annoying a child with Asperger's can be and how difficult it could be to have such a child in the classroom. It also highlighted the delight of such children. Just as importantly it emphasized the difficulty of parenting if one has never been exposed to parental love and reason. Highly recommended for anyone interested in the topic.
    • 5/5
      "If you know one child with autism, you know one child with autism," this popular saying within the autism community holds true with the character Rose Howard in “Rain Reign”. Rose has very specific likes and dislikes, she has habits and behaviors that make her uniquely special – as we all do, but Rose’s behaviors are more pronounced. Unfortunately, there are people in her world who find her uniqueness difficult rather than endearing adding an uncalled for amount of stress to Rose’s life. Although Rose lives with her father she depends heavily on her uncle, who is endlessly patient and supportive. On her own most afternoons and evenings, Rose depends on the companionship of her dog and best friend, Rain. When a hurricane strikes their town, Rose’s beloved dog is lost. As she deals with the situation the reader cannot help but love and respect Rose, who holds the adults in her life to a standard much higher than is their norm.
    • 5/5
      Rose in on the autism spectrum. She's high functioning and more than a handful for her single father. Her father's brother is a wonderful presence in her life. Rose loves collecting homonyms and prime numbers. And even more than that she loves her dog, Rain (reign). When Rain runs away during a superstorm, she is upset but develops a logical plan on working to find Rain again. Over the course of the book, readers see Rose grow, deal with stresses, and deal with loss.This will definitely appeal to students who like books like Wonder, Out of My Mind, etc.
    • 4/5
      I thought the story was good in this book. I have only worked with a couple of autistic children in my lifetime, I think he did a good job portraying them. However, the homonym and prime number stuff drove me crazy. I know the autistic mind probably thinks tha way but it interrupted the story for me. Rose lives with her father. He is a single dad. He works as a mechanic and frequents the Irish Pub. He is rough around the edges. He often yells at Rose. Then there's her Uncle Weldon who is very patient and loving. One day Roses father comes home with a dog he finde behind the bar he frequents. It's a rainy day so Rose calls the dog Rain, plus it's a homophone. Rose loves this dog then one day the dog disappears during a storm and what happens when they find it makes the story. I found the book somewhat annoying but moving. You just have to get past the homonym and prime number thing. I think it's a good book for kids to read to learn compassion and empathy. Rose tried very hard to not do the things that annoyed people, but it was part of her. I think it's good that other children understand the struggles one may face if the have autism. Overall I liked the book.
    • 5/5
      Rose, a fifth grader with Asperger's, obsessions with homonyms and prime numbers, a strained relationship with her father, a caring one with her uncle, and a beloved pet dog, must make a difficult personal sacrifice. A beautifully crafted story.
    • 5/5
      Rose is an autistic girl that lives alone with her father. She struggles with life due to her autism. She is very preoccupied with homonyms and prime numbers and when she gets upset she blurts out prime numbers. Her home life is complicated because her father struggles with her mom being gone and his daughter is not "normal". He also drinks. One day her father brings home a stray dog and gives it to Rose. Rose names the dog Rain (because it was a rainy day and rain has a homonym-reign). So Rose's existence is basically school, taking care of Rain, homework, cooking dinner for her/her dad, and avoiding dad if he comes home drunk. One night as a hurricane is approaching her father lets Rain out to go to the bathroom and Rain is lost in the storm. This story looks at Rose's relationship with her dad, her strength in looking for her lost dog, and her courage when she finally finds her dog and learns the truth about her mother being gone. Great book to help you see the issues that autistic children face in the everyday tasks of the world.
    • 5/5
      I'm just a sucker for dog stories and this one is my new favorite. be warned this book definitely requires a tissue box on hand. ms. martin does a wonderful job of capturing the voice of Rose, an autistic child.
    • 4/5
      There are quite a few books with buzz right now featuring unique, wonderful protagonists who have learning, mental, or physical disabilities. Rain Reign falls into this new popular genre, featuring a heroine with a high-functioning form of autism.I absolutely love Rain Reign by Ann M. Martin. This author needs no introduction and you're guaranteed a well-written novel for young adult readers. It is a sad, lovely story about a young girl named Rose, whose carefully constructed world is changed forever after a hurricane. Her determination, spirit and resilience in the face of turmoil, loss, and the baffling world outside of her own will win your heart.I have so many wonderful things to say about this novel. Rose is a quirky, endearing and inspiring protagonist with a deep love for her dog, the rules, and homonyms (reason #100 to read this novel: grammar lesson!). Her life isn't an easy one, but despite her strained relationship with her father, her difficulties in school, and the challenges of maintaining the order and routine of her world, she perseveres.As far as content goes, this is a fairly clean read. There is some uncomfortable near-violence when Rose's father loses his patience with Rose. Alcohol and objectionable language (the 'r-word', bullying, etc) are also content flags to be aware of. Overall, the content is handled well and serves a purpose to the plot, rather than existing for dramatic effect. Ann M. Martin is a teacher-favourite and the publisher's website even has a free discussion guide posted for download! (See link at the end of the review).Fans of Mockingbird (Kathryn Erskine), Counting by 7s (Holly Goldberg Sloan), and The Categorical Universe of Candice Phee will enjoy this novel. Anyone who has ever loved a pet will love this book, actually. Rose's love for dog is inspiring; she would do anything to save Rain--and to make sure she does right by her. Even if it means giving her away...Add this to your must-read list for this year! Ann M. Martin never disappoints!
    • 4/5
      Rose, a high-functioning autistic 12-year-old, loves homonyms and prime numbers, her Uncle Weldon, and her dog Rain. Her father is often harsh, her mother is gone, and her classmates are not particularly friendly, so Rose treasures the few bright spots in her life. When her father lets Rain out without her collar in the aftermath of a hurricane, Rain is lost, but Rose soon makes a plan to find Rain again. Will she succeed?I like to shoot straight with people in my reviews of dog books, so I will tell you this: the dog does not die, but this book will still make you cry. Martin does a good job of capturing the relationship between Rose and Rain without descending into sappiness. My only criticism of the book is that the ending felt rushed to me -- certain things happened and were never explained fully. On the other hand, that's quite similar to real life, especially for kids in situations similar to Rose's, so perhaps I shouldn't complain. I would recommend this book to readers who like stories featuring animals and don't mind a little sadness along the way.
    • 5/5
      This Newbery award winning author succeeded where many fail. Packing many issues into a small book, all of which are difficult subjects, yet rendered with a beautiful poignancy, marks this book a gem beyond compare!Rose has a lot against her, including an emotionally and physically abusive father. Told by her father that she was abandoned at age two by her mother, she lives with the aching feeling that she is not wanted.In addition, she is high on the spectrum of Aspergers, and she manifests a great deal of obsessive compulsive disorder. Having a coach at school helps, still, adjusting to a classroom setting is very difficult. With a father who does not want a "retard" for a child, her burden is great.Obsessively excited when she finds homonyms, she blurts out the names. Rule bound, she has panic attacks when there is a lack of consistency. Rose has a lot going for her, including an Uncle who loves her unconditionally. In addition, she has a wonderful relationship with her trusty dog Rain. Named because her father found him at the back of the bar in a rainstorm, it is one of the few gifts he ever gave Rose. Rain is with her throughout the lonely time when her father is drinking and she stays by herself, anticipating the arrival of a nasty, unpredictable adult.She can count on Rain. She can count on her Uncle. All else is quicksand and ever shifting.When a hurricane approaches and her father lets Rain outside, tragically after the storm, Rain is gone. Pulling together all the strength she can muster, she solicits the help of her Uncle and forms a game plan to find her beloved dog.This is a powerful book written by an author who knows how to tell an emotional story without over dramatizing.My favorite book thus far this year, this remains long after the last page is read.FIVE STARS
    • 5/5
      As we all know already, Ann M. Martin is the brilliance behind the Babysitter's Club fandom - one that is now considered a classic and is being read over and over again with each new generation. And now, she has managed to outdo herself a hundred times over with RAIN REIGN... Ms. Martin has managed to capture a voice that will forever live inside of my heart. It also takes a lot of heart, patience and understanding for an author to be able to get inside the mind of a 12-year-old girl who has aspergers and OCD. And then to give her a seemingly simple story to tell, a story that as small as it may seem at first, turns out to be the most powerful and thought-provoking story that I will probably read this year. Only a soulful person can accomplish that. Rose's story will force you to open your mind, and your heart. Rose has a story to tell. A story about her dog, named Rain. You better pay close attention. First, Rose gives us a little bit of a background first. These details are important to the telling of Rain's story... Rose is a 12 year old girl. She's in the 5th grade. She loves her dog Rain. She also loves homonyms, prime numbers and rules. She lives with her dad. Rose's dad has a hard time understanding her. He wants her to stop obsessing over her homonyms list. He doesn't like the monthly meetings at school with her teacher and aide. He gets very upset when she brings home her weekly reports informing him of her outbursts and repetitiveness. Rose tries her best. When things start to go a way that she can't handle, she tries to count using prime numbers only. It helps her calm down, sometimes. And then one rainy day, Rose's dad brings home a gift for her. A dog that has 7 white toes. The two become inseparable. Until the hurricane comes and her dad lets Rain out right after it. Rain goes missing. Why didn't her dad wake her up when he let Rain out? Why did he let Rain out right after a storm? Rose can only do what she does best - keep busy by thinking of a plan to find a Rain.No one can ever imagine what Rose's hard work will lead to.There are so many positive and wonderful things that happen in this book. All of Rose's relationships and encounters are so well thought out. Not only with her father and Rain, but with her uncle, classmates and even strangers. The reality of a girl with aspergers/OCD can be harsh and heartbreaking. But seeing and hearing it through Rose's eyes gave me a new perspective and understanding. At times, Rose had me in a fit of giggles and awe, at other times, I would get so angry or sad for her. Many tears were shed for my little friend.By the time I started the third chapter, I kept forgetting that I was reading a contemporary story about a little girl. It really felt like I was reading an autobiography. Rose is so real to me. All of her emotions, logic and feelings were so raw and full of innocence and life. It is really hard to comprehend that Rose is just a character that Ms. Martin gave a voice to. To me, she's real. And I would do anything to meet her. I would like to share the homonyms that I thought of that she didn't mention in her story... mince/mints and tighten/titan. Maybe they're on her list. Maybe not. Either way, I'd hope to impress her.The ending to Rose's story is heartwarming with a tinge of longing. I very much hope to hear from Rose again. I would like to see her as a teen, young woman... I'd like to grow up with her and follow her along through life, through her eyes. She's full of heart and extremely smart. I have high hopes for her future... No matter what your favorite genre is, this is definitely a book that everyone should read. I promise you, Rose will leave some sort of imprint on you - she will teach you something, make you feel something you never have before, make you think twice - she will touch your heart. (*An ARC was sent to me by the publisher for an honest review. All thoughts are my own.)
    • 4/5
      There are so many emotions packed into a slim novel that it is hard to digest them all. First, Ann M. Martin has managed to put together a touching story of family and being different and love. Rose is a fifth grader who is being raised by her dad and her uncle. Rose loves homonyms, is a stickler for following rules and wants desperately to wins her father's love. But Rose is different. She is autistic so she struggles with life, family and fitting into a world that doesn't understand her and that she doesn't understand. When her dad lets out her dog Rain into a hurricane and Rain goes missing, Rose's life will change forever. Touching, sweet and your heart will bleed for little Rose. Older kids will accept and understand the deep and troubling material in this book but younger readers will not. The story does point out the need for all of us to be a bit more patient and kind in our dealings with special needs kids. Being different isn't a bad thing, It's just different.
    • 4/5
      Oh, the best type of story. A lovely main character, Rose, who is on the Asperger's spectrum and obsessed with homonyms, and her dog Rain with her imperfect family. A sweet lovely tale.
    • 5/5
      I really enjoyed RAIN REIGN. This is a touching story told by a girl named Rose who happens to be high functioning autistic. She is bright and verbal but she is also obsessed with homonyms, rules, and prime numbers. Rose has trouble at school connecting with other kids but she has no trouble connecting with her dog Rain.Her father brought Rain home one rainy night and they have been fast friends ever since. But then a superstorm hits and Rose's father lets Rain out without her collar on. Rain doesn't come back. Once the storm passes, Rose develops a plan to find her dog. She makes a make and locates all the animal shelters within 50 miles. She makes phone calls and often repeated phone calls checking for her missing dog.One day, the Happy Tails shelter says that they have found her dog. But there is a problem. When Rose arrives with her Uncle Weldon, she learns that Rain has a microchip that says her name is Olivia and that she belongs to the Hendersons. Because Rose is also an obsessive rule follower, she next goes on a quest to find the Hendersons who have been displaced by the storm and return their missing dog. Rose decides that it is only fair to give up her friend.Since this story is told from Rose's viewpoint and in her voice, the sentences are short, precise and direct. We can easily see when she is getting sidetracked by her obsessions. There isn't much about Rose's feelings. She doesn't like to touch people and can't articulate how she feels. She has a great relationship with her uncle who seems to understand her and love her despite her peculiarities. Her relationship with her father is more problematical. Readers can see his frustrations with her and can see that Rose is a little bit afraid of him. He has anger issues but has never hit her though it appears he has come close.Readers who are interested in how autistic people see the world will enjoy this story. So will fans of stories of kids and dogs.
    • 5/5
      it was so incredibly sweet I loved it so much
    • 5/5
      This book is wonderful. The author connects the ideas so well. I cried at the end
    • 4/5
      I liked it but if you love dogs you shouldn't read it.
    • 5/5
      I love the book it's sad but it very detailed. My favorite part was when they reunited rain with her original owners.
    • 5/5
      Made me cry. Worth it. Felt like reading back through my childhood.
    • 5/5
      Viridiana Hernandez

      In the book Rain Reign it focuses on three characters, Rose, Uncle Weldon and Rose’s father as well. At the end of the story it talks about Rose’s mother and her absence throughout the story. The main plot of this book is Rose’s day by day life experiences she has with her family and schooling living with her condition called Asperger’s Syndrome. The main idea of the book focuses on the journey between Rose and her dog Reign. This is a unique book in my opinion because the main character Rose is the narrator of the story which makes it very personal and a way the audience can connect with her.

      Many of the readers or the overall audience may not be related to a condition like Rose or not have a condition at all. This book may be boring to some, but touching to others which in this case makes the book expand bigger ideas. The idea of this book is to connect to a person’s life experiences as a child in a condition that will forever be with them. The audience’s job here is to connect and put themselves in Rose’s shoes to understand the reading's big idea. The book is considered to have good language, knowledge and deeper thinking for the understanding of young readers. It has a different type of theme and plot in contrast to other children's books. It can create a way to have children to think deeper to understand the reading and connect with the characters. One way of doing so is digging deeper into the idea of Rose letting go of her dog Reign she loved so much, which leads to connecting with the characters.

      A big social problem I saw in this book was the way the father and school as well as the bus driver handled Rose’s condition. It was sad to read how the father would lose control and his patience towards Rose because of her condition which led him to let her go to Uncle Weldon at the end of the book. I think the larger significance of the book is that there are children and overall people that go through many things differently than others that can impact their lives tremendously. In my opinion it was written to have a better understanding of the differences in a person's life (Rose) to lead us to create an open mind towards the book. I really enjoyed reading this book because it led me to think differently about a child having a condition that can impact their everyday life. I enjoyed reading how the child's dialogue and mind worked with this type of condition. The dialogue was different, but was interesting to look at being that it gave it a deeper connection as the reader towards the narrator. It was sad to see Rose let go of her dog, but even worse seeing her father let her go with Uncle Weldon. Very touching to me.
    • 4/5
      Heartwrenching story of a girl with an obsession with homonyms and her dog. Told in a spare voice, and with an impressive level of backstory implied to the reader but divorced from the character. Rose has Asperger's, a hard time negotiating regular class life, an extremely unhappy father and a beloved runaway dog. She also has an Uncle on the sidelines who tries to make her life easier, but there's History that makes that difficult with her dad. Not an easy story to read, but very well done for a young audience, in that kids reading it, like Rose, may miss a lot of the implied violence/ fear/ anguish of the backstory, while enjoying the plot line of the main story. Great read.

    Book preview

    Rain Reign - Ann M Martin

    I

    The First Part

    1

    Who I Am—A Girl Named Rose (Rows)

    I am Rose Howard and my first name has a homonym. To be accurate, it has a homophone, which is a word that’s pronounced the same as another word but spelled differently. My homophone name is Rows.

    Most people say homonym when they mean homophone. My teacher, Mrs. Kushel, says this is a common mistake.

    What’s the difference between making a mistake and breaking a rule? I want to know.

    Making a mistake is accidental. Breaking a rule is deliberate.

    But if— I start to say.

    Mrs. Kushel rushes on. It’s all right to say ‘homonym’ when we mean ‘homophone.’ That’s called a colloquialism.

    ‘Breaking’ has a homonym, I tell her. ‘Braking.’

    I like homonyms a lot. And I like words. Rules and numbers too. Here is the order in which I like these things:

    1. Words (especially homonyms)

    2. Rules

    3. Numbers (especially prime numbers)

    I’m going to tell you a story. It’s a true story, which makes it a piece of nonfiction.

    This is how you tell a story: First you introduce the main character. I’m writing this story about me, so I am the main character.

    My first name has a homonym, and I gave my dog a homonym name too. Her name is Rain, which is special because it has two homonyms—rein and reign. I will write more about Rain in Chapter Two. Chapter Two will be called My Dog, Rain (Reign, Rein).

    Something important about the word write is that it has three homonyms—right, rite, and wright. That’s the only group of four homonyms I’ve thought of. If I ever think of another four-homonym group, it will be a red-letter day.

    I live with my father, Wesley Howard, and neither of his names has a homonym.

    From our porch you can see our front yard and our driveway and our road, which is called Hud Road. Road has two homonyms—rowed and rode. On the other side (sighed) of the road is a little forest, and through the trees you can see the New York Thruway. The word see has a homonym—sea. But even better, sees has two homonyms—seas and seize.

    I’m in fifth grade at Hatford Elementary. There’s only one elementary school in Hatford, New York, and only one fifth-grade classroom in the school, and I’m in it. Most of my classmates are ten years old or about to turn eleven. I’m almost twelve because no one is sure what to do with me in school. I’ve stayed back for two semesters, which is a total of one year. (1/2 + 1/2 = 1.)

    Some of the things I get teased about are following the rules and always talking about homonyms. Mrs. Leibler is my aide and she sits with me in Mrs. Kushel’s room. She sits in an adult-size chair next to my fifth-grade-size chair and rests her hand on my arm when I blurt something out in the middle of math. Or, if I whap myself in the head and start to cry, she’ll say, Rose, do you need to step into the hall for a moment?

    Mrs. Leibler tells me that there are things worth talking about besides homonyms and rules and prime numbers. She encourages me to think up conversation starters. Some conversation starters about me that do not have anything to do with homonyms or rules or prime numbers are:

    I live in a house that faces northeast. (After I say that, I ask the person I’m trying to have a conversation with, "And which direction does your house face?")

    Down the road, 0.7 miles from my house is the J & R Garage, where my father sometimes works as a mechanic, and 0.1 miles farther along is a bar called The Luck of the Irish, where my father goes after work. There is nothing between my house and the J & R Garage except trees and the road. (Tell me some things about your neighborhood.)

    I have an uncle named Weldon, who is my father’s younger brother. (And who else is in your family?)

    My official diagnosis is high-functioning autism, which some people call Asperger’s syndrome. (Do you have a diagnosis?)

    I will finish up this part of my introduction by telling you that my mother does not live with my father and me. She ran away from our family when I was two. Therefore, the people living in my house are my father and me. The dog living in our house is Rain. Uncle Weldon lives 3.4 miles away on the other side of Hatford.

    The next part of my introduction is the setting of my story. I’ve already told you my geographic location—Hud Road in Hatford, New York. The historical moment in time in which this story begins is October of my year in fifth grade.

    Now I will tell you something troubling about fifth grade. It isn’t as troubling as what happens later in the story when my father lets Rain outside during a hurricane, but it is still troubling. For the first time in my life I’m being sent home with weekly progress reports that I have to give to my father. The reports are written by Mrs. Leibler and read and signed by Mrs. Kushel, which is my teachers’ way of saying that they’re in agreement about my behavior. The reports list all of my notable behaviors for Monday through Friday. Some of the comments are nice, such as the ones about when I participate appropriately in a classroom discussion. But most of the comments make my father slam the reports onto the table and say, Rose, for god’s sake, keep your mouth closed when you think of a homonym, or, Do you see any of the other kids clapping their hands over their ears and screaming when they hear the fire alarm?

    In the last report Mrs. Leibler and Mrs. Kushel asked my father to schedule monthly meetings with them. Now he’s supposed to go to Hatford Elementary on the third Friday of every month at 3:45 p.m. to discuss me. This is what he said when he read that: "I don’t have time for meetings. This is way too much trouble, Rose. Why do you do these things?" He said that at 3:48 p.m. on a Friday when there was no work for him at the J & R Garage.

    Uncle Weldon heard about the monthly meetings on October 3rd at 8:10 in the evening when he was visiting my father and Rain and me.

    My father was standing at the front door, holding the letter in his hand and gazing out at the trees and the darkness. These meetings are crap, he said.

    Uncle Weldon, who was sitting at the Formica kitchen table with me, looked at my father from under his eyelashes and said, I could go, if you want. Uncle Weldon has a very soft voice.

    My father whipped around and pointed his finger at Weldon. No! Rose is my responsibility. I can take care of things.

    Weldon lowered his head and didn’t answer. But when my father turned around so that he was facing outside again, my uncle held up two crossed fingers, which was his signal to me that everything would be all right (write, rite, wright). I held up my fingers too (two, to), and we each touched our hearts with them.

    After that, Rain came into the kitchen and sat on my feet for a while.

    Then my uncle left.

    Then my father crumpled the letter from Mrs. Leibler and Mrs. Kushel and tossed it into the yard.

    That is the end of the introduction to me.

    2

    My Dog, Rain (Reign, Rein)

    The next character in my true story is Rain. A character doesn’t have to be a human being; a character can be an animal, such as a dog named Rain.

    Rain weighs 23 pounds. This is how you weigh a dog: You stand on the scales and weigh yourself. Then you pick up the dog and weigh yourself and the dog together. Then you subtract your weight from the weight of you and the dog together, and that’s how much the dog

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