ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

(REPRISE)

They say that nobody reads the acknowledgments page. But you—you’re not nobody. Chances are, you’re somebody close to me, hoping to see your name in print. Did you make the cut, Grandma? Read on…

Thank you to my editor, Jason Rekulak. This book went through many iterations, and Jason was there to hold my hand every step of the way. A recent study by researchers at the University of Colorado at Boulder and the University of Haifa suggests that hand-holding may have positive health benefits, including reducing pain. This has been my experience as well. Revisions weren’t entirely painless—they never are—but having an editor as skilled as Jason at the helm made the writing enjoyable and rewarding.

I am indebted to the rest of the Quirk Books team, especially Brett Cohen, Nicole De Jackmo, Moneka Hewlett, Rebecca Gyllenhaal, Jane Morley, Ivy Weir, Kelsey Hoffman, cover designer Doogie Horner, and, of course, Mr. Pringles.


Their enthusiasm and support for Hope Never Dies has never wavered.

Jeremy Enecio provided the kick-ass cover illustration. Check out his work at jeremyenecio.com.

Thank you to my agent, Brandi Bowles at UTA. She recognized the brilliance of my pitch immediately, responding with an email reading, “OMG.”

My wife punched up many of the best jokes in the book. I was going to thank her here, but she requested I donate her thanks to our sweet, sad cat, Honeytoast. So, thank you, Honeytoast.

I owe a special thanks, of course, to Joe Biden, who has overcome numerous tragedies and hardships to become one of the United States’ most celebrated public servants. He’s more than a meme—he’s a man of action. A man of action who loves his ice cream almost as much as he loves his country.