So many people generously gave their time to tell me their experiences. I’m particularly grateful to staff and students of Avonside Girls’ High School: principal Sue Hume, librarian Kaylene Moore, English Department staff, and ex-students Jessamie Davidson and Aleisha Cotterill (who were both in their first year at AGHS in 2011). My heartfelt thanks to Linley Earnshaw, librarian at Christchurch Girls’ High School for her stories and for checking the finished manuscript to ensure that it truly reflected people’s experiences. I’m very grateful to Belynda Smith who generously shared her stories. Police officers took the time to give me a picture of what it was like in the aftermath of the quake. A member of the police communications staff was especially helpful as she was stationed in Christchurch for a week a few days after the February quake.