Dobie's essay wins the $25 first prize in the newspaper's contest on the theme "My Dad" for Father/Son week, which has the potential to change Dobie's relationship with his father, each who doesn't really understand the other. The problems with Dobie winning this prize are that Dobie has no idea about the essay submission since Maynard submitted it on his behalf solely so that he could win the prize money to woo the latest girl of his affections, southern belle Mason Dixon, and that the essay is word for a word an essay Dobie wrote about his dog for an English assignment with the word "dad" substituted for the word "dog", meaning that all Dobie's classmates know the truth about the essay. But it does lead to a new friendship between father toward son. Further problems arise for Dobie when Herbert now wants to spend time with Dobie doing all the things Dobie wrote about in the essay, time that Dobie was going to spend with Mason spending that $25.
—Huggo