Dedication

 

The Summer of the Kittens honours two very important people in my life. I chose the young narrator’s name in loving memory of my maternal grandmother, Hanna M. Hulse, gone from this earth since 1966, but still very much alive in my memories and so often in my dreams. And the story is especially for our son Kendrick, keeper of tadpoles, nurturer of cats and hamsters and guinea pigs, and rescuer of birds and mice and baby skunks. Francis of Assisi would have been as proud of him as I am.

 

Acknowledgements

 

Shelley Hustins, Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, was kind enough to offer her guidance and expertise concerning the care of orphaned kittens, for which I am deeply in her debt. I also owe a special vote of thanks to Taffy, our tiny bottle-fed kitten, who slept warm and cuddly on my lap and kept me company as I edited this manuscript. And I will be forever grateful to Joanne Hudson, who cared for Taffy so lovingly after he lost his mother when just four days old.