Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
ACT I - Are You Lost?
ACT II - Some Very Interesting Choices
ACT III - It ’s a Trick-Taking Game
ACT IV - Yeah, He’s a Runner
ACT V - I Got Lucky
Acknowledgements
BOOKS BY SARA RYAN
The Rules for Hearts
Me and Edith Head (with Steve Lieber)
Empress of the World
Author’s note: Some places that I’ve written about in this book are real, though I’ve changed details and added elements to suit my story. But Forest House and all its inhabitants are fictional.
VIKING
Published by Penguin Group
Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 345 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, U.S.A.
Penguin Group (Canada), 90 Eglinton Avenue East, Suite 700, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M4P
2Y3 (a division of Pearson Penguin Canada Inc.)
Penguin Books Ltd, 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
Penguin Ireland, 25 St Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2, Ireland
(a division of Penguin Books Ltd)
Penguin Group (Australia), 250 Camberwell Road, Camberwell, Victoria 3124, Australia (a
division of Pearson Australia Group Pty Ltd)
Penguin Books India Pvt Ltd, 11 Community Centre, Panchsheel Park,
New Delhi-110 017, India
Penguin Group (NZ), Cnr Airborne and Rosedale Roads, Albany, Auckland 1310, New Zealand
(a division of Pearson New Zealand Ltd)
Penguin Books (South Africa) (Pty) Ltd, 24 Sturdee Avenue, Rosebank, Johannesburg 2196,
South Africa
Penguin Books Ltd, Registered Offices: 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
First published in 2007 by Viking, a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
All rights reserved
Lyrics quoted on page 122 are from “Palmcorder Yajna” by the Mountain Goats, C & P Cadmean Dawn [ASCAP], rights administered by Pacific Electric and used with permission of the artist.
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA IS AVAILABLE
eISBN : 978-1-101-01486-8
for U. C., with love
CAST,IN ORDER OF APPEARANCE
BATTLE HALL DAVIES, 18-year-old high school graduate, accepted to Reed College
NICHOLAS DAVIES, 22, Battle’s older brother, a cab driver, resident of Forest House
MERYL DAVENPORT, 22, swimming instructor, resident of Forest House
AURORA KNEEDLER, 46, owner of Forest House and artistic director of Theater Borealis
ROBERT CRACKNELL, 50, resident of Forest House, set designer and builder, Aurora’s partner
CHARLES FAHEY, 27, gardener, bike messenger, designer, resident of Forest House
HENRY O’BRIAN, 55, donor to and actor in Theater Borealis
DAMIAN J. WOLF, 28, actor in Theater Borealis
A NNALISA TANNAHILL, 34, actor in Theater Borealis
ELLERY TANNAHILL-LIPPMAN, 11, Annalisa’s daughter, actor in Theater Borealis
THE MINIONS, assorted genders, ages, Robert’s helpers in the Theater Borealis scene shop
LUCKY, 3, a dog
PROLOGUE
Church basement, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, almost five years ago
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
ACT I - Are You Lost?
ACT II - Some Very Interesting Choices
ACT III - It ’s a Trick-Taking Game
ACT IV - Yeah, He’s a Runner
ACT V - I Got Lucky
Acknowledgements
BOOKS BY SARA RYAN
The Rules for Hearts
Me and Edith Head (with Steve Lieber)
Empress of the World
Author’s note: Some places that I’ve written about in this book are real, though I’ve changed details and added elements to suit my story. But Forest House and all its inhabitants are fictional.
VIKING
Published by Penguin Group
Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 345 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, U.S.A.
Penguin Group (Canada), 90 Eglinton Avenue East, Suite 700, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M4P
2Y3 (a division of Pearson Penguin Canada Inc.)
Penguin Books Ltd, 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
Penguin Ireland, 25 St Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2, Ireland
(a division of Penguin Books Ltd)
Penguin Group (Australia), 250 Camberwell Road, Camberwell, Victoria 3124, Australia (a
division of Pearson Australia Group Pty Ltd)
Penguin Books India Pvt Ltd, 11 Community Centre, Panchsheel Park,
New Delhi-110 017, India
Penguin Group (NZ), Cnr Airborne and Rosedale Roads, Albany, Auckland 1310, New Zealand
(a division of Pearson New Zealand Ltd)
Penguin Books (South Africa) (Pty) Ltd, 24 Sturdee Avenue, Rosebank, Johannesburg 2196,
South Africa
Penguin Books Ltd, Registered Offices: 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
First published in 2007 by Viking, a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
All rights reserved
Lyrics quoted on page 122 are from “Palmcorder Yajna” by the Mountain Goats, C & P Cadmean Dawn [ASCAP], rights administered by Pacific Electric and used with permission of the artist.
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA IS AVAILABLE
eISBN : 978-1-101-01486-8
for U. C., with love
CAST,IN ORDER OF APPEARANCE
BATTLE HALL DAVIES, 18-year-old high school graduate, accepted to Reed College
NICHOLAS DAVIES, 22, Battle’s older brother, a cab driver, resident of Forest House
MERYL DAVENPORT, 22, swimming instructor, resident of Forest House
AURORA KNEEDLER, 46, owner of Forest House and artistic director of Theater Borealis
ROBERT CRACKNELL, 50, resident of Forest House, set designer and builder, Aurora’s partner
CHARLES FAHEY, 27, gardener, bike messenger, designer, resident of Forest House
HENRY O’BRIAN, 55, donor to and actor in Theater Borealis
DAMIAN J. WOLF, 28, actor in Theater Borealis
A NNALISA TANNAHILL, 34, actor in Theater Borealis
ELLERY TANNAHILL-LIPPMAN, 11, Annalisa’s daughter, actor in Theater Borealis
THE MINIONS, assorted genders, ages, Robert’s helpers in the Theater Borealis scene shop
LUCKY, 3, a dog
PROLOGUE
Church basement, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, almost five years ago
