Thanks to my family and friends; especially Mark Fleming, a careful, considerate, and tough reader and good friend; my brother, Barry, who answered (and still does) endless questions so I could get all kinds of details right; my brother, Greg, who kept asking me when the next book was coming out—here it is—; my brother, David; Ellen McQueen, the dearest of friends, for her good heart and good ear, as I read aloud many different versions; my colleagues at the University of Mary Washington, especially Chris Foss, for his helpful advice; Gary Nelson, for everything; for my great and good friend, Christine Sanderson who made sure the Catholic passages were done right; to the children at Powell and Bugg Elementary Schools, Raleigh, NC, 1982–89, who were the inspiration for the main characters, especially for Russell and Jeff; my editor, Gary Turner, at Golden Gryphon Press, who continues to make this process great fun, and Marty Halpern, GGP’s other editor, who keeps Gary in line.