Acknowledgments

First, this book would not have been remotely possible if it weren’t for my small, but intimate circle of friends in high school, especially my first serious boyfriend. (You know who you are.) Unbelievable, that I kept dozens of their letters, stored in a shoebox for more than forty years.

 

 

Second, I applaud the faculty in the MFA program in Writing for Children and Young Adults at Vermont College of Fine Arts for encouraging us all to push the creative envelope, especially my faculty advisors Ron Koertge and Tim Wynne-Jones. I remain grateful for the undeniable friendship of “The Unreliable Narrators.”

 

 

Third, I am beyond fortunate to have Kelli Chipponeri and Greg Jones as my editors at Running Press Kids and Jill Corcoran as my agent. All carry an extraordinary compassionate gene and are equally passionate about books for young people.

 

 

Fourth, I am grateful for my two writing families, Cambria Writers Workshop, and most affectionately, Kiddie Writers, always willing to wring out a hanky over rejections and eager to pop a cork over successes.

 

 

Fifth, I treasure my mom (who survived my teen years, barely), Lou (for sharing his crazy Navy stories), daughter Krise (who makes me laugh when I need it most), daughter Kyle (who reads to our boys every single night), Jon (who puts up with us), and grandsons Michael (who thinks I’m famous), Cooper (who never rats me out), and Chase (who shares his finger food).

 

 

Sixth, I am indebted to my partner and best friend on the entire planet, Phillip Cole, not only because he was essential to the writing and revision of this story, but for a gazillion other nameless reasons.

 

 

Seventh, my utmost admiration for the two-and-a-half million American soldiers who braved the living hell of Vietnam from March 8, 1965 when the first combat troops landed at China Beach to the fall of Saigon on April 30, 1975.