Although this book is fiction, it is based on real events surrounding the housing scandal at Walter Reed that became known in 2007. To learn more, please read the series of articles published in the Washington Post by Dana Priest and Anne Hull, whose undercover investigation and reporting (with accompanying photographs by Michel du Cille) won the Pulitzer Prize. I’m grateful to these authors for their insight into the conditions of life at Walter Reed for recovering soldiers and their families, and acknowledge their work as an inspiration for my novel.
Of the many other sources that contributed to my understanding of Walter Reed, the Iraq War, and its home front effects, the following proved especially helpful: Blood Brothers by Michael Weisskopf; Home Fires Burning by Karen Houppert; A Soldier’s Courage by Janis Galatas; Long Road Home by Martha Raddatz; Operation Homecoming edited by Andrew Carroll; The War Comes Home by Aaron Glantz; Thank You for Your Service by David Finkel; Run, Don’t Walk by Adele Levine; Alive Day Memories directed by Jon Alpert and Ellen Goosenberg Kent. I also relied on Edith Wharton by Hermione Lee and A Son at the Front by Edith Wharton, with introduction by Shari Benstock.
This novel would not have been possible without the incomparable Alice Tasman and editor extraordinaire Brenda Copeland. Much appreciation also to Laura Chasen and everyone at St. Martin’s Press.
Thanks to the staff and institution of the Pritzker Military Museum and Library, especially librarians Tina Louise Happ, Angela Grunzweig, and Paul Grasmehr.
Several people lent me their time and expertise on matters related to the military and medical treatment. (All remaining errors are my own.) Thanks to Jonathan Popovich, readjustment counselor. A thank-you to Daniela DeFrino, MS, RN, of the University of Illinois at Chicago. In Chicago, a thank-you also to Dr. Paul Defrino, MD, orthopedic surgeon, and to Dr. Ellen Omi, MD, trauma surgeon.
I am very grateful to those who read the manuscript and offered suggestions and support: Liam Callanan, Rebecca Makkai, Gina Frangello, Rachel DeWoskin, Thea Goodman, Zoe Zolbrod, and Dika Lam. And for encouragement along the way, many thanks to Caroline Hand Romita, Jenny Mercein, Lauryn Gouldin, Melissa Tedrowe, Bonnie Gunzenhauser, Valerie Laken, and Dawn Smith.
For time and space and quiet, thanks to the Ragdale Foundation, and the Holy Wisdom Monastery of Madison.
I want to acknowledge the many dear members of my extended family who have or are currently serving in the armed forces, and especially to the women in our family who know well what it is like to be the wife, mother, grandmother, or sibling of a service member at war. Particular thanks to Mary Gray, whose comments on the manuscript—and whose support—were invaluable.
Much love and thanks to my amazing parents and siblings, especially to Lowrey Redmond for taking care of me on research trips to Washington, D.C., and to Jocelyn Gray for sharing her expertise as a therapist for military veterans and their families. Special gratitude goes to my brother Malcolm Gray, who allowed me to learn from his experience as a Marine in Iraq and then to tell my own story. This novel is dedicated to him with love and admiration.
To Courtney, Samantha, and Wendy: all my love.