Annelies полностью

As I wrote this story, I was constantly aware of the fact that Anne Frank was a real person, a person who wrote one of the defining books of the twentieth century before dying tragically. In imagining a life for her had she survived, I hope to accomplish two things: to give Anne the life she was cheated of and, through telling the story of one girl, to tell the stories of all the Annes, thereby underscoring the lost potential of the millions who perished and reminding us of what we are missing in our world today because of their loss. Anne Frank’s legacy is one of hope, and it is my hope that if I can offer a reminder of what we have lost, we can dedicate ourselves to making a better future.

Acknowledgments

Sitting at a laptop, tapping away at the keyboard, can be isolating. But thankfully there have been many more people involved in the creation of this book than simply myself, and I owe them all my gratitude and deep appreciation. I hope I have made that clear to them over the years it has taken to complete this novel, but I’d also like the opportunity to do so in print.

I must thank my incredible agent, the best of the best, Rebecca Gradinger of Fletcher and Company, whose hard work and devotion made it possible for me to continue over the long journey of the soul this project became. Her commitment, patience, and insight through multiple drafts kept me focused and on track, and honestly I could not have written this book without her. Additionally, many thanks to Christy Fletcher, founder of her amazing agency, and to Veronica Goldstein for her professional support and excellent management of the myriad details.

My deep appreciation goes to my wonderfully patient and simply outstanding editor, Sarah Stein, who did the detailed in-the-trenches editing that balanced the narrative flow and kept the story lean and the prose well polished. Thank you, Sarah. Your dedication was immense, and I owe you a tremendous debt of gratitude.

Thank you to Viking editor in chief Andrea Schulz for her devotion to the book and for her essential work in shaping the novel’s contours. And my thanks to Viking publisher Brian Tart for his commitment, as well as to all the other incredible professionals at Penguin Random House with whom I am honored to work. I’m so grateful to assistant editor Shannon Kelly, whose hard work and great dedication to the project have been invaluable; to Maureen Sugden, whose copyedit was so sensitively and skillfully done that it felt like a true collaboration; to production editor Bruce Giffords; to Nancy Resnick, interior design, and Brianna Harden, whose cover design is perfect; to marketing director Kate Stark and Mary Stone, title marketer; to publicity director Lindsay Prevette and Louise Braverman, publicist; and to the entire Penguin Random House sales staff, who have dedicated long hours of heavy lifting to bringing the book to readers. Thank you all for getting Annelies to its audience.

My gratitude goes also to Amy Einhorn, who published my first novel, City of Women, under her imprint, and who originally bought the Anne Frank book. Thank you, Amy.

I want to extend my appreciation as well to those who supported me along the way. Thank you to my writing consultant, Carol Edelstein of A Gallery of Readers, who acted as a valuable sounding board for the work, and to Ans van der Graaff of Ans van der Graaff Vertaalservice in Middelburg, Netherlands, whose translation skills were so helpful to me in my research. Thank you to my fellow writers Pat Stacey and Charles Mann, who listened to me go on and on about this book and continued to be supportive throughout. I also greatly value my social media connections with fellow writers Jillian Cantor, Lyndsay Faye, Kathleen Grissom, Judy Hooper, Pam Jenoff, Erika Marks, Paula McLain, Julie Ries, Erika Robuck, Kate Whouley, and Andria Williams.

In my research, I had vital assistance from several sources. I must offer immense gratitude to the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam for allowing me access to areas of the house not normally available to the public, such as the office kitchen and the private office, both spots where important scenes in the book are set. Also, I would like to pay my respects to the memory of Cornelius Suijk, who passed away in 2014 at the age of ninety. In his youth, Cor was a member of the Dutch resistance. He was also a friend of both Otto Frank and Miep Gies and served the Anne Frank House as a board member and as a director. Cor, it is an honor to have known you.