When Life Gives You Mangos

by Kereen Getten

  You can do this, Clara.

  I slide onto the board and paddle out. When I am far enough out, I sit and wait for the wave.

  “Yay, Clara!”

  I turn toward the beach, where Rudy is waving excitedly. She cups her hands around her mouth. “You’re a surfing warrior!” she screams. “You’re a surfing warrior with wings, and the wave is your enemy.”

  It’s all I need. I turn back to the sea as a wave hurtles toward me. My heart is pounding against my chest; my ears are filled with the sound of Rudy chanting my name. I wait until the last second, jump on my feet, and turn my board along the inside of the wave. The moment lasts only seconds before I fall off my board.

  But I have never felt more alive.

  When I first sat down to write this story, I had no idea where it was going. All I knew was I wanted to write about friendships. How losing your best friend can be the worst heartbreak in the world but also how important it is to have good people in your life.

  What I ended up with was much more than that. Clara’s story became part of me. Her town is where I was born. Pick leaf is a game I played as a child. Her story will always be special to me.

  None of this would have been possible without the following people, who have believed in me, motivated me, and worked tirelessly to get Clara’s story into the world.

  To Alice, agent extraordinaire. Thank you for taking a chance on me. Thank you for fighting in my corner. You have changed my life. To everyone at the Madeleine Milburn Agency, who work so hard for their clients, thank you.

  Thank you to my US editor, Kelsey Horton, and to the entire Delacorte Press team, who have turned my vision into reality. Thank you for sharing my enthusiasm and love for Clara’s story.

  To my UK publishers, Pushkin Press, especially my editor, Sarah, thank you for your ongoing support whenever I have needed it. Thank you for sharing my vision.

  To my son, Tristan, who threatened to press send on my manuscript when I was too scared to do it myself because “They’re going to love it, Mum.” I cherish the moments when we laugh about the silliest things, when you trust me with your fears and your goals. You are going to be a force in this world.

  To my sister, Karen, who has seen me through the roughest times, making everything bearable with impromptu day trips and holding my hand whenever I needed it, thank you.

  To my mum, Makeda, who patiently listened to every high and every low and responded with “But you always do it, even when you’re afraid.” Thank you for always having my back.

  To Lynda Mason, who has been my cheerleader from day one. Thank you for believing in me when I often (daily) didn’t believe in myself. Here’s to more adventures.

  To Mrs. Henson, my English teacher who told me to do something with my writing and never got to see this book for herself.

  Thank you to the Nottingham Review for publishing my first-ever short story and to Ad Hoc fiction for nominating my story for Best Short Fiction.

  Thank you to the FAB Awards for shining a light on writers of color. To #DVpit, which gives underrepresented voices a chance to shine and is the reason I met my agent. To all the writing friends I made on Twitter, and especially to those on Instagram who have supported my poetry and short stories from the beginning. Thank you.

  KEREEN GETTEN grew up in Jamaica, where she would climb fruit trees in the family garden and eat as much mango, guinep, and pear as she could without being caught. She lives in Birmingham with her family and writes stories about her childhood experiences. When Life Gives You Mangos is her debut novel.

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