ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Thank you to my supportive agent, Shannon Hassan, for picking Aven out of the slush and falling in love with her. To my brilliant editor, Christina Pulles, whose insight and direction made this book so much better. To Ryan Thomann for designing a beautiful cover. And to everyone at Sterling who worked so hard for this book: Hannah Reich, Ardi Alspach, Sari Lampert Murray, Maha Khalil, Chris Vaccari, and the entire sales team. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Thank you to my friends and family who read early versions of the book. To two inspiring ladies: Barbie Thomas and Letisha Wexstten. To my husband for always supporting me. To my children for filling my life with humor. To Kyle, always. And most of all, thank you to God, from whom all good things come.

Lastly, thank you to my awesome readers. I hope you enjoyed reading Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus as much as I enjoyed writing it!