A List of Cages(74)

It’s dark when I stretch out on my back on the trampoline. Listening to the voices of all the people I love, I gaze up at a perfect night sky. It’s as if the lights strung through the trees have moved to float above us. Beautiful and too many to see all at once.

Ten million stars.





Not long ago, I told my son I love him so much that sometimes my chest fills up like it’s going to burst, and I have to take a deep breath. He responded, “That sounds like a medical condition.” Did I mention he’s a bit of a smart aleck?

Well, that’s what I’m feeling now—an I-can’t-breathe kind of love and gratitude for the people in my life. So much that even though my editor’s given me a year of extensions, I still don’t know how to put it into words.

But here goes.


I would like to say thank you to:


★ Peter Steinberg. When I pictured my dream agent, he was smart, dedicated, and above all else, kind. I got my dream agent. I’m also very grateful for my foreign-rights agents (Jess Regel, Kirsten Neuhaus, Heidi Gall) and Foundry Literary + Media.


★ Stephanie Lurie—my warm, wise, endlessly encouraging editor, who showed such sensitivity and patience with a first-time novelist—and everyone at Hyperion. They all made this journey such a joy.


★ Kate Hawkes—the kind of friend who’ll hop on a plane when you need her, never judges, and has so much love to give—and the entire Hawkes family, who I’m claiming as my family too.


★ Sandra Francis, the embodiment of unconditional love. And all my friends in Dallas (Tracy, Jody, Dina, Daphney, Petra, and the list goes on). Life is better than I ever could have imagined because of them.


★ Joshua, who came into our lives singing and made us a family.


★ Michael—my hyperfriendly-wild-running-resilient-brown-eyed boy.


★ And Joe. For several years I had a debilitating illness. There were times I couldn’t walk. There were times I couldn’t see. And through all of this, Joe was there—kind and funny and nurturing and giving, with a maturity so far beyond his years. He told me I would get better, every single day, until I did.