The Right and the Real (30 page)

“James?” Dad asked. “Did you find something good?”

I swallowed hard. Silent tears ran down my face. “Yeah,” I said. “Yeah. I found something really good.”

Leave it to Dad to put the envelope in the one carton he’d been sure I would open, and have it turn out to be the box I couldn’t face because it contained all my memories and dreams.

“I’m ready when you are,” Dad said.

I pulled out my complete volume of Shakespeare, opened to
All’s Well That Ends Well,
and began to read aloud to my father.

Michael Bourret—thank you for your insights, encouragement, and for your lightning-quick responses to my never-ending questions. Sometimes you’re so fast I think you must be answering my e-mails while I’m still pushing the Send button.
Merci beaucoup!

Stacey Barney—thank you for your faith in me, and thank you for always asking all the right questions so the story comes out better than I could’ve hoped. I’m so happy to count myself as one of your writers.

Thanks to the sales and publicity team at Penguin, especially Penny Mason, Vimala Jeevanandam, and Caroline Sun. And thank you to all the wonderful indie bookstores and the staff at Powell’s who hand-sold my first book with such enthusiasm. When you grow up in Portland, it’s a dream come true to see your book in the window at Powell’s Books.

Special thanks to my friends, family, fact checkers, early readers, and cheerleaders. Thank you to Linda Anthony, Frank Anthony, Eileen Cook, Nova Ren Suma, Sarah & Cheryl Tradewell, Kelly & Nicole Berthelot, Alyson Beecher, and Reggie & Mavie Cruz. Also, special thanks to the Brouhahas—Kim Thacker and Alexa Barry—who read so many versions of this manuscript I’m surprised they can see straight anymore. And Joelle Charbonneau, please take a bow for all your assistance with the musical theatre aspect of the story.
I could never really sing!
Plus, it’s always better to have two Joelles on the job
if you can.

To Ms. Peacock’s Grade 6 & 7 classes, I’d like to say thank you for reminding me it only gets done with “less talking, and more writing.” Lots of love, and a big thank you, to Ashly Anthony for promoting her auntie’s first book to her whole third-grade class (and beyond). Every writer needs someone like you.

Thanks to Mark Cotter for his expertise and for keeping me from making up the law to suit my plot, no matter how inconvenient I thought it was at the time.

I’ve been waiting for the opportunity to show my gratitude publicly to writer Arthur Slade for introducing me to the idea of the treadmill desk, and now I’ve got my chance. Thanks, Art! And thanks to Ken Capon for building it for me. Without it, I’d need bigger pants.

As always, thank you to my husband, Victor, for making dinner when I was too tired to think, for growing most of our food, for riding his bike to the store a thousand times for the few items he couldn’t grow, but I had to have to keep writing (yeah, I mean doughnuts—thus the need for the treadmill desk), for a wonderful author picture, and for endless cups of tea. You’re the best. As before, without you, there would be no book at all. I love you, Pea.