A sweet book about a girl and her relationship with her father. ( )

Kevin Henkes' books for young adults have a certain style. They are less plot driven and more character and relationship driven. Episodes are related, even entire chapters, that develop the character without really advancing the plot. They are gentle, serious, and emotionally involved stories.

In Protecting Marie, 12 year old Fanny is struggling with her father, who tuned 60 right before Christmas. He is an ultra-neat and precise man, who doesn't always handle things well when they are not neat and orderly. He loves Fanny, but has trouble showing it, and his temper frequently gets in the way. The most traumatic experience of her past was when her father brought her a puppy, her greatest desire, only to realize a few weeks later that he couldn't live with it, and he gave it away.

Now, he brings her another dog, a 3 year old this time, and Fanny is terrified that he will take Dinner (the dog's name) away like he did the last time.

Ultimately, it isn't about the storyline, it is about the relationship between Fanny and her difficult father. Her mother, a couple of school friends, and even Dinner, are all secondary characters. ( )

Beautiful. I imagine some children might be frustrated that there's not more about the dogs in this, but I think there's enough. Don't be worried that the family is dysfunctional - they're just not perfect, which is true of even the wonderful family that I grew up in.

Part of the father's problem is that Dad's older. The plot begins on his 60th birthday, and his wife is almost 20 years younger, and then Fanny is only 12. So they definitely have challenges fully connecting with one another just on that basis. And then, to boot, they have differences in personalities and attitudes. To be honest, I empathize with the dad. I can't imagine bringing a dog into the family - thank goodness my son doesn't need one the way Fanny does.

But this is by Henkes - reliably brilliant. He really gets people, especially children, and writes poetically but effortlessly. This is one of those books that could be read quickly, but should be savored. Don't read so fast you miss details like the idea of drinking milk through a red licorice whip, or like the fact that Dad and Fanny agree that even though the Snow Queen is evil, they like her, though Mom doesn't understand, or like the fact that Mom and Dad actually are called by their names, Ellen and Henry.

I'd like to recommend it to everyone, and will at least to all fans of quality children's and MG stories. Ok, 4.5 stars. ( )

This is the story of a young teenager, who gets mad at her father, and worries about many things. It was an okay read, just not engaging for me. ( )

A 12 girl named fanny...a dog..... a problem .... with her dad..... the dog will make the difference...... I recommend this story to people like family.