Like Nate when he lost his father, I was thirty years old when my mother, Natalie, died. It was decades too soon for her, but a lifetime too soon for me. She was a wonderful mother and a perpetual guiding light, as well as a great friend. Not a day goes by when I don’t think about her and what it might be like to still have a mother—or at least to have had one much longer than I did.
Those kinds of thoughts about my own long-gone parent laid the groundwork for The Mother I Never Had, which I then spun into a wholly fictional “What if?” tale. That is, what if you never had a mother and suddenly found yourself with one at a particularly vulnerable and susceptible time in your life? In this case, right after the death of the one parent you did have? How would it change you and how would you incorporate that virtual stranger into your life? How fortuitous would a scenario like that be? How complicated?
So first and foremost, I’d like to thank my mother, to whom this book is dedicated, for everything she was and all that she did for her children. Mom, you are sorely missed.
To my family and friends: My deepest thanks for your ongoing love, support, and enthusiasm throughout all of my creative endeavors. Especially my better half, Bill, who after all these years never ceases to laugh at my corny jokes and mistakenly thinks I’m far more talented than I am. You’re the best. And to my sister, Lynn, a late-blooming writer, who is always there with a ready ear, an encouraging word, and a well of emotional insight.
To everyone who read, talked up, recommended, posted about, promoted, interviewed me for, and maybe found a little bit of themselves in my last novel, The Last Birthday Party: You were the candles on its cake. Or to use a more tried-and-true phrase, the wind beneath its wings. (Yeah, I know, but it’s really a great lyric at times like this.) You spoiled me with your attention and, just so you’re aware, I’m expecting it again.
Enormous thanks, kudos, and hugs to the doyennes of Hadleigh House. Every author should be lucky enough to have the likes of Allison, Alisha, and Anna in their corner for the long and painstaking journey of publishing their work. I’m thrilled that we’ve been able to enjoy an encore to our relationship with this second book.
To my editor, Kate, who has once again proven to be a wonderfully astute and insightful force for making my words and thoughts make as much sense as intended. I love her note upon reading the first draft of Mother, that it had “a layer of humor in even the darkest moments.” Who knew?
I’d also like to give a shoutout to Renee Weiss Weingarten, who founded the vibrant Facebook community known as Renee’s Reading Club. Your devotion to books, authors, and readers is second to none and this writer greatly appreciates the kindness you’ve shown him and The Last Birthday Party.
And finally, to all the mothers and fathers we’ve ever had, who’ve done the profound, challenging, and hopefully gratifying work of raising their children the best way they knew how: My hat is eternally off to you.