I’d like to thank Ginger West & Allan Wolf for their reading of the work in progress; Dan Morgan for generous and thorough research assistance; Kim Witherspoon for her outstanding advocacy; Elisabeth Schmitz, Morgan Entrekin and the entire crew at Grove/Atlantic for the dedication and focus brought to this project; extended family members who, regardless of their private doubts, never offered anything but encouragement over the years; and finally, my mother, who, among other passions, instilled in me the love of reading and books beginning all those years ago on the lawn of the North Pomfret farmhouse.