The Campaign

by Leila Sales

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  Sometimes a book can change your life, and one that changed mine was Judy K. Morris’s The Kid Who Ran for Principal. I first read that book when I was eight years old, and it is long out of print, but it has had a lifelong impact on me and on my storytelling.

  I can’t close this book without a huge thank-you to my parents. Had you not, despite my protests, insisted on listening to NPR on the car radio every morning and every evening, I can’t imagine that I would have written Maddie’s story. Thank you for taking me to political protests before I was old enough to remember them, for subscribing me to kids’ newspapers even though I only read the human-interest stories, and for driving me to and from campaign headquarters when other kids were going to soccer practice. Thank you for all your years of political activism and engagement and for trying to give me a better world to grow up in. You are my supporters and my role models. I love you endlessly.

  Thanks to my editor, Maggie Lehrman, and my agent, Stephen Barbara, for your storytelling wisdom and for seeing the potential in Maddie’s story. Thanks to the teams at Abrams and Inkwell for all their work to get this book into readers’ hands, especially Emily Daluga, Marie Oishi, Marcie Lawrence, Kim Lauber, Nicole Schaefer, Hallie Patterson, Jenny Choy, Patricia McNamara O’Neill, and Andrew Smith.

  Thanks to Brian Pennington, Rebecca Serle, and all the rest of my friends who supported me as I was writing this book.

  Thanks to the news media outlets who strive to keep us informed about our government and give us the data and stories we need to make responsible decisions. Thanks to the teachers and librarians bringing civic education to their students all across the country. And thanks to all the principled, wise, ambitious politicians I have volunteered for and their campaign staffs, who inspired this story.

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Leila Sales attended political rallies when she was a baby, started a petition against her third-grade language arts textbook, volunteered for her first mayoral campaign when she was twelve, and as a teenager competed in debate competitions all over the world. Since then, she has built a career as a critically acclaimed author of many middle-grade and young adult novels, including Once Was a Time and This Song Will Save Your Life. She is also the editor of award-winning and bestselling books for children of all ages. She still cares about politics. Learn more at LeilaSales.com, or follow her @LeilaSalesBooks.

  ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR

  Kim Balacuit is an illustrator and designer who studied animation and illustration at Montclair State University. She lives in Rutherford, New Jersey, and is fond of animals, banana bread, and long road trips.

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