A twelve-year-old faces the fact that her father is dying, and then his death, but dealing with the emptiness afterwards is hardest of all.

During the summer before their seventh-grade year, Kristy, Mary Anne, Claudia, and Stacey tackle difficulties, including family problems, crushes, moving, and making new friends.

Flora worries about her first Thanksgiving without her parents, while Ruby worries about getting a part in the school musical, and their new friends, Olivia and Nikki, are adjusting to big changes in their families.

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. Struggling with Asperger's, Rose shares a bond with her beloved dog, but when the dog goes missing during a storm, Rose is forced to confront the limits of her comfort levels, even if it means leaving her routines in order to search...

At the urging of a very artistic new girl who encourages Claudia to practice art instead of caring for kids, Claudia considers leaving the club and the other members give her an ultimatum.