Rain Reign, by Ann M. Martin

If there's one thing Rose can't get enough of, it's homonyms. She's pleased that her own name is a homonym (Rose, Rows) and that her beloved dog's name Rain is a triple homonym (reign, rein). Rose is comforted by rules that her father, teachers, and peers don't understand. Rain and her Uncle Weldon are the only two she can count on for unconditional love.

When a devastating storm sweeps through Rose's small town, Rain goes missing and Rose must cope with a disrupted routine and searching for her dog. Her methodical approach pays off when she locates Rain at an animal shelter, but it's a bittersweet victory when she's informed by the vet that she belongs to another family based on Rain's microchip information. Rose takes Rain home, but can't help but put forth an effort to find Rain's original owners.

The culminating events will leave you heartbroken by loss, but joyful at Rose's determination to do the right thing, even if it's not the easiest. Rose doesn't match up with most other people which may explain her affinity for homonyms, as she observes that, "Most of them seem unrelated, some seem to be opposites, like soared and sword, but a few make lovely connections if you're open to changing your perspective when you think about them." Rose valiantly overcomes her own fear of change and inspires others to change for the better along the way in Martin's latest wonder of a story.

A Dog Called Homeless, by Sarah Lean

Sometimes, a dog seems like the only one that understands what you're going through. In Cally's case a stray wolfhound, that she calls Homeless, is the only other witness when the her mom's spirit appears. Since her passing, Cally has filled the void by trying to the be center of attention at school and home, so all are surprised when she accepts a challenge to remain silent. She no longer sees the point in explaining herself since no one believes her when she tells them that she has seen the ghost of her mom.

Cally works through feeling disconnected from her dad and moving out of her beloved house and into a new apartment with the help of her partially deaf and blind newfound friend, Sam, and his mom, Mrs. Cooper. She's free to be silent around them without ridicule and opens Sam up to a new sense of freedom from his mom. The pair ultimately find out the connection between Homeless and Cally's mom.

Dog lovers will adore A Dog Called Homeless and it's fitting for those coping with loss. Lean focuses on the fact that life can be hard at times, but a good friend and a good dog can make all the difference.

The Dogs of Winter, by Bobbie Pyron

Judging from the cover, I thought, The Dogs of Winter, was going to be a feel good dog book. Boy, was I wrong. Now, there are some heart-warming parts, but there are just as many heart-wrenching aspects. We follow a boy, Ivan, who through a series of deaths and run-ins with horrible people becomes an orphan and has to find a way to scrape by on the streets. The presence of thugs and lack of welfare from organizations that aren't wanting to yank the kids into sub-par orphanages is bad enough, but the added element of the severe winters in Russia make survival especially difficult.

Ivan faces all of these tribulations at the early age of five and develops some advanced insights for such a young age from the exposure to the extreme harshness that the world has to offer. When he finds himself running out of options for survival, it is a pack of dogs that renew hope and the possibility of life in this young boy. He provides for them as best he can by begging for money and food, while they offer him protection, shelter, and companionship that is otherwise unavailable.

He is soon part of the pack and is so close with the dogs that they are able to communicate without words. For a few years, they spend their Springs and Summers in the forrest and make their way back to the city at the first sign of snow. Life is never easy for them. There is never certainty where their next meal will come from and Ivan is constantly in fear of being taken to an orphanage by the less than honest nuns.

While this book is full of sad moments, it is also brimming with one example after another of the strength of the human spirit and the love of a good dog. Though, this book doesn't have the happiest of endings it  reflects the harsh reality that many children endured during the 1990s in Russia, as the number of orphans exploded and the country did little to aid the situation. Definitely read, but keep tissues and funny book to switch between close by.