Review: A Dog Called Homeless by Sarah Lean

A Dog Called Homeless

by Sarah Lean

from the author's site: 

‘My name is Cally Louise Fisher and I haven’t spoken for thirty-one days. Talking doesn’t always make things happen, however much you want it to…’

Cally Fisher saw her mum bright and real and alive. But no one believes her, so Cally’s stopped talking.

A mysterious wolfhound always seems to be there when her mum appears and now he’s started following her everywhere. But how can Cally convince anyone that Mum is still with them, or persuade Dad that the huge silver-grey dog is their last link with her?

my thoughts: 

I was immediately drawn into the story of Cally who is heartbroken when her mother dies in a car accident. At her mother's funeral, Cally sees her mom, as real to her as anyone else, off in the distance. Unfortunately for Cally, no one believes her. Cally's story really begins on the one year anniversary of her mother's death when everything starts to change. After a sponsored silence fundraising event at school, Cally decides to remain silent.  It is in this way that she copes with change, loss, and her father's emotional distance. 

It is amazing the way that Cally learns to communicate with the world around her without saying a word. When she befriends a blind and deaf boy named Sam, a whole new type of communication is opened up to her. For me, their friendship is one of the highlights of this book. Sam and Cally have a true friendship that doesn't always need words. 

Naturally my other favorite part of this story was the dog, Homeless. He seems to know right away that Cally is his girl, but it takes time and an emotional reveal for her father to hear what Cally has to say about Homeless. 

A Dog Called Homeless is definitely an emotional book, but I think it's a great book for helping children understand loss, grief, and the healing that comes in time. I strongly recommend this book. 

how I acquired this book:

I borrowed it from my local library.