A Blind Spot for Boys (26 page)

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Many people taught me how to see clearly as this book evolved.

Deepest gratitude goes to Alvina Ling and Bethany Strout, an editorial dream team if there ever was one.

Donna Francavilla generously shared her eyewitness account of the mudslides on the Inca Trail. And Ruben, raconteur and tour guide of Machu Picchu, regaled my kids and me with (harrowing) stories about the trail. I hope they and other trekkers understand that I needed to make a few geographic changes to that beloved trail for the sake of this story.

Meg Lippert is the best trekking partner a woman could have, leprechaun-green coat notwithstanding.

Annie Griffiths, photographer for
National Geographic
; Chris Linder; and Leslie Magid Higgins provided
veritas
and passion for their art form. And Eric Swangstu shared insights into the college portfolio review process and art that knocks your heart open.

Alfie Treleven of Sprague Pest Control, Tom Pleas, Susan Polzak, and May—quite possibly the most adorable bedbug-sniffing dog on the planet—thank you for teaching me about bedbugs, rats, and the pest control industry.

Dr. Bob Glaze, Dr. Kathy Vuu, and Dr. Mike Tam helped me understand some of the illnesses that lead to blindness—and, more important, the human emotions that accompany that process. All medical inaccuracies are mine and mine alone.

Karen Bonnell continues to teach me about insight and true sight.

And always, always, always, heartfelt thanks go to my children, Tyler and Sofia, who are especially patient when I live what I learn, even when I now insist on inspecting hotel rooms for bedbugs.

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.

Copyright © 2014 by Justina Chen

Cover photo © Carlos Hernandez / Getty Images

Cover design by Sarah Hoy

Cover © 2014 Hachette Book Group, Inc.

All rights reserved. In accordance with the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, the scanning, uploading, and electronic sharing of any part of this book without the permission of the publisher is unlawful piracy and theft of the author’s intellectual property. If you would like to use material from the book (other than for review purposes), prior written permission must be obtained by contacting the publisher at [email protected]. Thank you for your support of the author’s rights.

Little, Brown and Company

Hachette Book Group

237 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10017

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Little, Brown and Company is a division of Hachette Book Group, Inc.

The Little, Brown name and logo are trademarks of Hachette Book Group, Inc.

The publisher is not responsible for websites (or their content) that are not owned by the publisher.

First ebook edition: August 2014

ISBN 978-0-316-36438-6

E3