When You Were Here

University of Tokyo, a study on ethical decision-making and patient autonomy in Japan and the United States conducted by the Stanford University School of Medicine, studies on patient autonomy and diagnosis disclosure conducted by the Department of Geriatric Medicine at Tan Tock Seng Hospital in Singapore, as well as the article “Comparison of Diagnostic Disclosure in Japan and the United States: From Communicative Perspective” by Tomoka Noguchi. I am also grateful for the insight from my doctor friends Sandeep Wadhwa and Louise Lo on doctor-patient relationships and how they impact the next of kin.
    I relied on several sources for the Japanese translations in this novel. Thank you to Eric Sandler, Eve Eschenbacher, and Kana Kozawa, whose name also provided the inspiration for a central character in the novel. Any mistakes in Japanese are entirely mine.
    Big thanks to Kathy Brooks for helping me understand more about the Jewish approach to the afterlife, and to Garry Brooks for his invaluable input on air-conditioning. Trust me when I say that both of your respective contributions on religion and on handyman-ism are equally vital!
    Many thanks for the booksellers, teachers, librarians, bloggers, and fellow authors who spread word of mouth and, of course, to readers. I adore hearing from you. You, readers, are why I write.
    Thanks to Cammi Bell, Ilene Braff, Kelli Anderson, and so many of my “real life” friends who were there when I got to say, “My book sold!”
    I thanked my husband at the beginning of these acknowledgments, but I’ll thank him again, because he makes the best sandwiches, finds the funniest TV shows, and always knows when I need a crazy cat photo or penguin gummies to pick me up.
    To my children, whom I love fiercely and endlessly and with everything I’ve got. You guys are my loves. Always and forever.
    And a tradition is a tradition is a tradition. Danny is fortunate to have a dog who is “the definition of perfect,” because his dog is my dog. Violet, I am sure, would be delighted to lend her personality and looks to Danny’s dog, Sandy Koufax, if she cared about such things. Alas, Violet cares most about tennis balls, kibble, and taking up as much space on the bed as she possibly can, since she is a bona fide furniture dog and will always have full furniture privileges, as all dogs should.

Copyright
    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 © 2013 by Daisy Whitney
    Cover design by Liz Casal
    Cover photo © Simon Filip / Getty Images
    Cover © 2013 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
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    First ebook edition: June 2013
    Little, Brown and Company is a division of Hachette Book Group, Inc.
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    ISBN: 978-0-316-20973-1