Sometimes the truth sets us free. But most of the time, it's the scariest thing in the world - so scary it keeps us on the run for our entire lives.
Which is why, when an eight-and-a-half-year-old homeless boy and an eccentric elderly woman trapped in a retirement community forge a fragile bond and become each other's accidental family, they only have one rule: never speak about before.
But the truth has a way of catching up to us, spoken or unspoken. And when the pair's bond is tested, they may finally have to face their pasts. Or they could just run like hell. Their fateful decisions lead to misadventures that include a 30 mile taxi ride, smuggled brownies, angry bees, a soundtrack by Cole Porter, and a rising body count that is (mostly) not their fault.
It Rhymes With Truth is the story of two people wrestling with their pasts while they struggle with a vexing question: Is it possible to truly save someone else who may not want to be saved? This beguiling, haunting first novel by Rich Miller will stick with you long after the final page. This is the rare book makes you laugh out loud before breaking your heart, mending it, then putting it back in your chest with a different heartbeat.
Acclaim for It Rhymes With Truth:
"Miller's deeply felt tale illustrates how life's greatest challenges always arrive before we're ready for them, and how they shape us into the people we become....A masterfully controlled tear-jerker of a novel about found family." -Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
"Miller's storytelling is charming and contemplative... subtly showcasing the defensive psyche of a child shaped by a rough childhood. A vital, moving novel." -BookLife/Publisher's Weekly (Editor's Choice)
"You made me cry. What a lovely book in ways that shouldn't be lovely. You made me feel deeply about these very flawed people, and that is what books are supposed to do." - Jenn Bailey, award-winning author of Henry, Like Always and co-author of the forthcoming The Not So Quiet Life of Marcel Marceau
"I lost count of how many times I laughed out loud while reading It Rhymes With Truth.... [The novel is] an absurd and unforgettable tour de force." --Reader's Favorite, 5-Star Review
"It Rhymes With Truth is a heartfelt literary work that leaves a lasting impression, making me eager to read Miller's future works, and to recommend this to fans of accomplished character-led dramas everywhere." --Reader's Favorite, 5-Star Review
Industry Reviews
Critical Acclaim for It Rhymes With Truth
Named to the 2024 Notable 100 list by Shelf Unbound
Rated one of the top 50 literary fiction novels of 2024 in the BookLife Awards
"Miller's curveball coming-of-age tale lands in the strike zone." -Publishers Weekly
"The nature of memory is interrogated at every turn, and the possibility of love is never denied in It Rhymes With Truth, a poignant novel about a cross-generational friendship.... With equal parts wit and tenderness, Rich Miller's heartfelt novel looks for answers to the question of loneliness in the relationship between a young boy and an old woman. It Rhymes With Truth burns with compassion and delights in all of the absurd, beautiful, and painful ways that people try to care for one another against the crushing weight of alienation." -Clarion Reviews [5 Star Rating]
"Miller's deeply felt tale illustrates how life's greatest challenges always arrive before we're ready for them, and how they shape us into the people we become.... A masterfully controlled tear-jerker of a novel about found family." -Kirkus Reviews [starred review]
"Miller's storytelling is charming and contemplative... subtly showcasing the defensive psyche of a child shaped by a rough childhood. A vital, moving novel." -BookLife/Publishers Weekly [Editor's Choice]
"Touching, humbling, and thought-provoking, It Rhymes With Truth is a beautifully written piece of fiction.... A homeless eight-(and a half)-year-old boy. A lonely retiree. A relationship borne from solitude and a future saved by compassion. It is the balance between light and dark, humor and introspection, loneliness and friendship, vulnerability and resilience that adds layers of authenticity and emotional depth through the story, inviting us to reflect on our own lives and relationships. It Rhymes With Truth by Rich Miller has something for everyone, and its message will remain with us long after we've reached the final page." -5 Star Review by Reader Views
"A thoroughly engaging novel.... This book is wonderfully fresh, with a breezy style that incorporates song lyrics, drawings, and comical footnotes. Ruth is especially original and funny." -Booklist [Starred Review]
