Marie Yates was recently featured in 'Dogs Today' as her book, Reggie & Me is about a girl and a dog. Reggie is the cover model.
Here's what they said...
"Marie Yates’ debut novel Reggie and Me follows the story of teenager Dani Moore, as she deals with life in the aftermath of a rape. Dani has to start afresh in a
new school in a new town, feeling she has to both carry and hide her past. The realisation
comes when Dani refuses to be defined by what has happened to her, a journey helped in many ways by Reggie, her new rescue dog. Reggie becomes the constant
unwavering presence in Dani’s life, both as a source of comfort and a role model for being totally undefined by anyone or anything else. As a Rottweiler- German Shepherd
cross, Reggie has an intimidating presence that leads to many negative misconceptions throughout the story, and a troubled past that he too must overcome.
It is an attitude that Marie is unfortunately familiar with, as the owner of a living and breathing Reggie. The real Reggie isn’t the bounding two-year old represented in the
story, although that is his image staring dolefully from the front cover of the book. Reggie is actually now approaching nine. Marie took Reggie on at a difficult time
for Rottie enthusiasts everywhere: shortly after two Rottweilers had attacked and killed a baby girl in a Leicester pub in September 2006. To this day she remembers being shouted
at in the street when
out walking him.
Whether Rottweiler or rape survivor, today’s mainstream media can be a detrimental labels or stereotypes. It was to Marie writing her novel, as she sought to challenge the beliefs everyone seems to project on to survivors of sexual assault. The idea that it is a defining event, leading to a lifelong process of recovery that can never be completed, she finds very unhelpful.
“The media seems to want to push the message that everything is hideously rubbish,” says Marie. “And it isn’t! But young people just aren’t getting this. I have always wanted to write, but I wanted to produce something that wasn’t patronising.”
True to her word, Marie has struck a careful balance, and refused to cave in to the seemingly inevitable sensationalism that overruns any story that has rape or sexual
assault as a key theme. Reggie and Me contains no coverage of the event and very little about the perpetrator, a rarity that adds to the narrative. Although aimed at
the young adult market, the book’s success has transcended ages and won support from leading figures in ‘both worlds’, as she refers to them: the survivor-supporters
world
and the dog world. Dog Today loved it not only for its pro-rescue and anti-‘breedist’ message, but for the way Marie has perfectly captured that untouchable connection between teenage girl and dog,
at a time in life when relationships are tumultuous, and made and broken in moments.
Marie has been overwhelmed by the response to her first book, and is now set on completing a trilogy. For now, though,
she splits her time between her work with survivors, and her newfound joy of working with dogs. In an unforeseen twist, Marie is now a fully qualified dog trainer.
“Because I have a book with a dog on the front cover, people always ask me questions about dogs: ‘How do you get Reggie to
do this?’ and so on. I enrolled with the Institute of Modern Dog Trainers just so I could answer these questions and didn’t sound like an idiot! After the two-day
course, I was hooked.”
Marie then set up Canine Perspective with partner Jill Bates, described as a social enterprise to use dog training for a wider benefit to society. Among their
clients are survivors, people with autism and Asperger’s, those experiencing challenges
with their mental health, and people who have experienced bereavement.
Canine Perspective is also partnered with the charity Nowzad, which helps strays in Afghanistan, and offers
rehabilitation to the more challenging dogs waiting in rescue centres.
“I suppose I need to practise what I preach,” Marie ponders. “Reggie has helped me see that working with
dogs had to feature more strongly in my life.”
Written by Victoria Heywood for http://www.k9magazine.com/k9-magazine/ reproduced here with permission.
Reggie & Me is published by Lodestone and available to purchase.
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