Protecting Marie

At the cusp of adolescence, 12-year-old Fanny Swann has reached a crisis point in her relationship with her artist-father Henry. Most recently, there was the betrayal. After years and years of having his daughter beg for a dog, Henry finally gives her a puppy. But when the precious pup starts chewing furniture and making puddles in the studio, Henry insists that the culprit be given away. But even before the betrayal there had been tension between Fanny and Henry. His need for orderliness and solitude was always in opposition to Fanny's need for companionship and clutter.

Months later, on Henry's 60th birthday, he brings his daughter a trained 3-year-old dog named Dinner. The replacement dog does not mend the broken trust. Rather, it underscores just how shattered Fanny's trust truly is. Kevin Henkes is sympathetic to the struggles of an aging, uninspired artist as well as the ache of a young girl who longs to believe in her father, but is afraid to take another leap of faith. When the source of their rift--Fanny's need for a dog--becomes the source of her father's inspiration, Henkes does not settle on a pat ending. Instead, he dares to enter the deeper complexities of the father-daughter relationship, exposing young adult readers to the emotional vulnerability of both parents and their children. School Library Journal Best Book, Publishers Weekly Best Book. (Ages 12 and older) --Gail Hudson