by Carrie Jones
“I think he’s lying,” my father says. He rubs my back in little circles.
“Why?”
He takes his hand away and puts the car in reverse to get out of the parking space. “That I don’t know. But you are my daughter, end of discussion.”
“End of discussion?” I ask, looking up and trying not to laugh at him suddenly being all parental. He notices.
“What?” He lifts his hands off the wheel, waving them around. “Isn’t that a good-father thing to say? I’m trying to be a good father.”
I grab his hand, hold it and say, “You are.”
He blinks. “What?”
“You are a good father,” I say.
And then it’s his turn to cry.
Acknowledgements
Dear Mom, Dad, Debbie, and Bruce, You are NOTHING like the family members in this book. You are actually a million times better. Thank you.
Dear Doug Jones, You are always being a hero in ways large and small. You have literally saved lives.
Dear sweet Emily, You are the best kid ever. Thank you for being so brave and so cuddly and for always speaking out for others all the time, even when it’s hard.
Dear Rob Eaton and Shane Lowell, Both of you guys have rescued me when I needed rescuing. Thank you. I know you don’t think you are, but you are absolutely heroes.
Dear editors, Andrew Karre and Sandy Sullivan, You truly are heroes in the word world. Thank you for doing so much to make stories into books.
Dear Entire Flux Crew and especially Brian Farrey, Thank you for being so darn brilliant, and for working so hard to get this book out there. You make me proud to be a Fluxor.
Dear agent gurus, Edward Necarsulmer and Cate Martin, You guys are superheroes. I’ve said it before. I’ll keep saying it. Thank you for saving me from many free-falls.
Dear Tim Wynne-Jones, Sharon Darrow, Louise Hawes, and Ellen Howard, You all inspire and give every day. That’s what being a hero is about. Thank you for helping me with this book.
Dear Jackie Ganguly, Jennifer Osborn, Meloyde Shore, and Laura Hamor, Thank you all for being woman heroes. To Mary McGuire, Dottie Vachon, Doris Bunker Rzasa, Gayle Cambridge, and Alice Dow, Thank you for being awesome friends and for being mother-crusaders. And to the Whirligigs of Vermont College, the Schmoozers, the LJers and the PWs, You give me so much. I can never thank you enough. I love you.
Dear Will Rice, Bethany Reynolds, Phil Bailey, Dexter Bellows, Heather Martin-Zboray, Evelyn Foster, Kate Simmons, Hannah Pingree, Sean Faircloth, Howard Dene, Starr Gilmartin, Cliff Vaux, Don Radovich, and the rest of my campaign crew, Putting your faith in someone else is not only heroic, it is beyond brave. Thank you for all you do to make the world a better place. You all prove that politics isn’t just about power. It’s also about people, compassion, and caring.
Dear people who know how Lily feels, Thank you for surviving and thriving. You are all the biggest heroes of all. Thank you for being such great people. The world is better because of you.
Dear John Wayne, Thank you, too. The entire time I wrote this book I imagined you giving me that look …Wagons forward!
© Doug Jones
About the Author
Carrie Jones likes Skinny Cow fudgicles and potatoes. She does not know how to spell fudgicles. This has not prevented her from writing books. She lives with her cute family in Maine. She has a large, skinny white dog and a fat cat. Both like fudgicles. Only the cat likes potatoes. This may be a reason for the kitty’s weight paroblem (Shh . . . don’t tell). Carrie has always liked cowboy hats but has never owned one. This is a very wrong thing. She graduated from Vermont College’s MFA program for writing. Along with several column, editorial, sports writing, and photography awards from the Maine Press Association, Carrie has also been awarded the Martin Dibner Fellowship and two Maine Literary Awards—the most recent for her YA debut, Tips on Having a Gay (ex) Boyfriend.
