ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

There are many people who contributed to making this book a reality, and to them, I am eternally grateful. But without the “you-can-do-anything” attitude instilled in me as a child by my unconventional parents, I don’t think I could have seen this project through to the end. Also, growing up in a Japanese-inspired house on a woodsy back lot in Atherton, California, prepared me in a strange way for this farm life I lead today. And because of that, I feel deeply at home in this very foreign country.

 

As a lifelong cook, writing a cookbook was always on the far horizon—a goal I worked toward slowly—first teaching local cooking classes, then entering the global food world through Slow Food, and eventually publishing small articles and a blog. How I got to this place right now is thanks to the relationships built up over the years, but also to a chain of events that resulted in this book.

 

I want to thank the people involved in that chain: Toshiya Yoshikai, for opening the door to freelance writing jobs; Joanne Godley and Sylee Gore, for encouraging me to write a blog and pointing me in the right direction; the Undam(n)ed Women Writers group, for friendship and moral support; Malena Watrous (Stanford Continuing Studies), for invaluable editorial advice and mentoring; my old (and new) friends who read my blog and keep me on the straight and narrow; Mora Chartrand-Grant, for her most thorough feedback on recipes; Sylvan Mishima Brackett and Sharon Jones, for propping me up and being my sounding boards; Patricia Wells and Alice Waters, for their inspiration and generosity; Amy Katoh, for opening up the world of Japanese country things in her books and for introducing me to my dear friend and editor in Japan, Kim Schuefftan (who was with me every step of the way from inception to completion); Kenji Miura, my talented and indefatigable photographer; David Lebovitz, for galvanizing me to put this particular book on the front burner and move the others back; writing coach Dianne Jacob, for pushing me through the onerous book proposal process; my agent, Jenni Ferrari-Adler, for her acerbic humor and straight-shooting editorial advice; designers Julie Barnes and Diane Marsh for completely "getting" me and my vision for this book; and Jean Lucas, my editor at Andrews McMeel, for not only choosing to publish Japanese Farm Food, but also for allowing me so much input and creative control—an anomaly in the publishing world (or so I am told).

 

But most of all, I thank my farmer husband, Tadaaki, without whom there would be no book; sons Christopher, Andrew, and Matthew, for their patient good humor throughout the more hectic phases; the Sunny-Side Up! staff, Alyssia, Yumiko, and Chizuru, for their unwavering support; and all the little crazies at SSU! for the unadulterated love and joy they give me each and every day. Life should be so simple!