Times are different. Parents worry about their children much more now than mine ever did. So how do parents judge the level of liberty that should be allowed for kids without seeming paranoid, or over-protective? A new book ponders these issues.

“The Possession of Mr. Cave” by Matt Haig is a peculiar little novel. Haig resides in the English city of York. This story takes place there. Terence Cave is the proprietor of Cave Antiques. The Cave family, such as it is, resides above the shop.

Mr. Cave is the father of twins, Reuben and Bryony. Haig begins his story as Cave narrates a letter that he is writing to his daughter Bryony: “Of course, you know where it begins. It begins the way life begins, with the sound of screaming.”

Cave peers through the upstairs window and determines that his son Reuben is endangered. He runs to help but arrives a second too late. Reuben is dead. The twins were 14 years old when the accident happened.

Their father is filled with guilt. He had always favored his daughter while Reuben was often ignored. Bryony is the apple of his eye. She’s an excellent student. She plays cello — Daddy’s girl. Cave decides that he will do everything in his power to protect her now.

That’s when things go very wrong. She rebels against his strict rules, seeking forbidden romance with a young tough from the wrong end of town. Dad freaks out. He installs a hidden monitor in her bedroom so that he can listen in on her phone calls and conversations with friends.

He shadows her everywhere. Mr. Cave reveals his creepy behavior in the form of this long letter that he is writing to her. As he details his fears he describes a life brimming with trauma. When Cave was only three his mother took her own life and he discovered her body.

When the twins were infants there was a holdup at the shop. The robbers heard baby Reuben crying over the baby monitor. Their mother tried to run to her children. The robbers killed her. Cave always blamed Reuben for his wife’s death.

Then Reuben died. It’s quite sad. It almost seems that Cave is possessed by the spirit of the dead twin. Bryony is so perturbed by her father’s actions and the saddest part is that he treats her like she is his property, merely the possession of Mr. Cave.

Cave finally gets it: “Yet it occurs to me now that every single attempt I made had a reverse effect. Each time I tried to interfere in your life I pushed you away from me, and lost a little more of your trust and respect.”