Читать книгу One True Secret - Bethany Campbell - Страница 3

Dear Reader,

People often ask if my characters are based on real people. In One True Secret, the answer is yes and no.

Most of the characters are composites of the real and the imaginary. The heroine, Emerson, owes her beauty and boldness to one of my friends who has the good fortune to have both. But Emerson’s other qualities are drawn from a number of different people, some of them members of my family. And part of her is pure imagination.

Still, I confess that one character is drawn completely from reality. The only thing that is made up about him is his name.

This character is Bunbury, the overweight gray cat who chirps rather than meows. Bunbury is nearly identical to my overweight gray cat, Hodge, who chirps instead of meows. Hodge could sue me for invasion of privacy and libel, but he couldn't care less about being in a book. Outrage, even mild irritation, would be a waste of his preciously hoarded calories.

His passions are (a) eating (b) coveting the food of others and (c) being petted. He hates the vacuum cleaner, all doors that shut him in or out and, most of all, travel.

As this is being written, Hodge is lying on the dog’s cushion, hogging it as he manages to look both sleepy and superior. He will not answer to the name Bunbury, but he won’t answer to the name Hodge, either. He’s a real cat, but he’s also, in every sense of the word, a real character.

Best wishes,

Bethany Campbell and Hodge, a Very Fine Cat Indeed.

Bethany would love you to visit her at her Web site, www.bethanycampbell.com.