Robert J. Wiersema - Bedtime Story

Ive been living with Bedtime Storyin various forms and stages of developmentfor more than half a decade now. In that time, Im sure that errors and mistakes have been made: Im responsible for those. I cop to it freely.

Those things that went right, though, I owe to a tremendous group of people.

First, to my family, which somehow seems to keep growing: births, marriages, remarriages, domestic arrangements To all the Eddys, the Wiersemas, the Dusmanns, and the various other permutationsI cannot thank you enough.

Special thanks, of course, are due the moms in my life: my mother Helen Eddy, and my mother-in-law June Dusmann. I cannot express my gratitude for the support and their enthusiasm over the years. And to my grandmother, Phyllis Eddy, one of the people I most admire in the world.

To my mind, Before I Wake was a story about mothers and daughters; Bedtime Story is a novel about fathers and sons. With that in mind, I want to give my deepest thanks to some of the men who have shaped my life. My father, Joe Wiersema, who gave me life and a middle initial, also gave me a love of reading: his were the first grown-up books I read, and I never looked back. To say that he has always been one of my biggest supporters would be a grave understatement. My brothers, Dave and Jon, are writ large in my soul. Were not the closest of siblings, but I would die for either of them. My stepfather, Tom Baldwin, is both smart and wise, and makes my mother happy (which is both wise and smart). My father-in-law, Rolf Dusmann, either welcomed me into his family, or tried to scare me out of it, with a white-knuckle Volkswagen ride which haunts my dreams. He still scares the hell out of me, and I love him dearly. My brother-in-law, Terry Dusmann, has always been one of the strongest supporters of my writing, and he vows hes my one phone call should I ever get arrested in the GVRD.

And my thanks to one teacher this time, Mr. Siver (like a diver, not a river), who on the first day of grade five introduced a classroom of malcontents to the idea of Jungian archetypes. One of us was listening, and it shaped my life.

My life, and writing, have also been shaped by twenty years as a bookseller. Ive been blessed to have spent the bulk of that time working for, and with, Mel Bolen and Samantha Holmes, who have been nothing but supportive and encouraging. I go to work, every day, at Bolen Books, with the finest booksellers in the country, and good friends who keep me (relatively) down to earth. Being a bookseller also means being a part of a larger community of like-minded rebels who recognize, and have given their lives to, the written word. B.C. is graced with the best booksellers and sales reps I know, and I am truly blessed to have you all as friends. Thank you, always, for fighting the good fight.

The actual writing of a novel is a long, solitary process. There are a couple of people, though, who provided invaluable assistance during that lonely time. The good doctorand writerKevin Patterson once again offered crucial medical guidance, and my thanks go out to Chris Houston for his invaluable support.

Once the manuscript was off my desk, it went first to three people whose eyes I have come to depend upon: Cori Dusmann, James Grainger, and Colin Holt. Saint Jimmy is the sort of man every writer should be lucky enough to have in his corner: never short of opinions, with a keen eye and a sense of vision (the two should always go hand in hand). Colin has become essential to my survival over the last few years: he not only weighs in on the words, but he has a knack for planning and a pragmatic efficiency that has rescued me more than once.

Ill come back to Cori.

As the manuscript went out into the wider world, it became clear, once again, that I have been fortunate enough to align myself with, frankly, the best in the business. Im represented by the McDermid Agency, and my thanks go out to Martha Magor, Monica Pacheco, and Chris Bucci. My deepest appreciation, however, I extend to Anne McDermid, who is less an agent than a force of nature.

A special thanks to Lisa and Gregory Thomas-Tench, and the team at Redwerks.org, who are responsible for the redesign of robertjwiersema.com: drinks are definitely owed. And drinks also to Michael Holt, who held my hand through my early forays into the online world, and who has been a rock of support.

The whole team at Random House Canada is also without peer. From people like Karen Blair, who has been one of my biggest supporters from the beginning, to Cassandra Sadek and Julie Forrest in the online department, to Leah Springate, who made Bedtime Story a beautiful object, inside and out, Im really in the best of hands. My thanks go out to Craig Pyette, who edited this book both bravely and skilfully, to my publishers Anne Collins and Marion Garner, and to Louise Dennys. My publicist, Sharon Klein, is simply the best, and, as such, is the only personother than my grandmotherwho gets away with calling me Robbie. And special thanks to Kendall Anderson, who was there at the beginning, and whose influence carries clearly through these finished pages.

The act of writing acknowledgements like this is something of a double-edged sword: it provides an opportunity to publicly thank the people who have made a difference, but it also underscores just how insufficient words can be.

Nowhere is that more clear than when it comes to Cori and Xander.

Xander is eleven now, the same age as David in this novel (Ill leave the psychological ramifications of thatand so much elsefor someone else to decipher), and he inspires and amazes me every single day. He is also supportive, and an earnest champion, and he knows now that dreams come true, but not free.

And Cori. This book, once again, owes everything to her. She is not only a fearsome reader and editor, she is also my inspiration. She is the reason I write, and has been now for more than two decades. These words belong as much to her as they do me. Thank you, Cor. From the bottom of my heart.

I would like to gratefully acknowledge the financial support I received from the Canada Council for the Arts, which assisted immeasurably in the writing of Bedtime Story.

R OBERT J W IERSEMA is a bookseller and reviewer, who contributes regularly to the Vancouver Sun, the Globe and Mail, the Ottawa Citizen and numerous other newspapers. His bestselling novel, Before I Wake, was a Globe and Mail Best Book. Wiersema is also the event coordinator for Bolen Books in Victoria, B.C., where he lives with his wife, Cori Dusmann, and their son, Xander.

D AVIDS EYES GLEAMED as I set the package on the coffee table in front of him. I had wrapped it in the comics pages from last Sundays paper, the way my mother used to wrap all my birthday presents.

I wonder what this could be, he said, bouncing the package in his hand, teasing me.

Only one way to find out.

Jacqui was clearing the far end of the table, stacking the cake plates, crushing the torn wrapping paper into a Thrifty Foods bag.

It feels like a book, he said, running his fingers around the edges of the package.

From your father? Jacqui asked. How odd.

David giggled as he tore at the paper. He looked up at me when he saw the leather cover and a corner of a faded, silver-embossed seal, and I smiled. He pulled the rest of the paper off with a flourish, no longer able to bear the excitement.

Then his face fell.

Oh, he said, turning the book over in his hands. To the Four Directions, he read, furrowing his brow. By Lazarus Took.

I forced myself to keep smiling. Jacqui shook her head and plucked the comics in which Id wrapped the book to tuck them away.