B.F.F., page 26
Thank you to Karen Yates for always bringing her A-game to every conversation. I’m so lucky she went to The Workshop and that she bravely wades into the waters of self-expression and exposure every day and generously shares all that wisdom with me. And special thanks to Leslie Darling and Michael Lach for always being the first to pre-order my book, and for all the care and feeding. Our conversations at your kitchen island have bolstered me as a writer more than you know.
Thank you to Javier Ramirez and Kristin Enola Gilbert, Chicago booksellers and book lovers extraordinaire. Their support of my work, books, authors, and readers means so much to me and to Chicago. They’ve brought so much joy to my life. Thank you!
Thank you to my parents for calmly accepting my memoir career—I promise I’ll give fiction a go next.
All love and thanks to Mary Cibelius, whose voice I still hear in my head every single day. I think of her whenever I see quinoa or have an intense friendship experience. And also when I hear a Cher song, which is more often than you might think.
To Jeff, Sadie, and Simon—I’m brimming with gratitude for your patience, your capacity for celebration, and for your ability and willingness to hold me tightly every single day. I can’t imagine the hell of living with someone who writes creative nonfiction for a living, but you accept your fate with so much grace and generosity that I can only be humbled and say: Thank you.
More from the Author
Group
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Christie Tate is the author of the New York Times bestseller Group, which was a Reese’s Book Club selection. She has been published in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, McSweeney’s Internet Tendency, and elsewhere, and she lives in Chicago with her family.
AvidReaderPress.com
SimonandSchuster.com
www.SimonandSchuster.com/Authors/Christie-Tate
@avidreaderpress @avidreaderpress @avidreaderpress
ALSO BY CHRISTIE TATE
Group
We hope you enjoyed reading this Simon & Schuster ebook.
Get a FREE ebook when you join our mailing list. Plus, get updates on new releases, deals, recommended reads, and more from Simon & Schuster. Click below to sign up and see terms and conditions.
CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP
Already a subscriber? Provide your email again so we can register this ebook and send you more of what you like to read. You will continue to receive exclusive offers in your inbox.
AVID READER PRESS
An Imprint of Simon & Schuster, Inc.
1230 Avenue of the Americas
New York, NY 10020
www.SimonandSchuster.com
Copyright © 2023 by Christie Tate
“My Dead Friends”, from WHAT THE LIVING DO by Marie Howe.
Copyright © 1997 by Marie Howe. Used by permission of W. W. Norton & Company, Inc.
Names and identifying characteristics have been changed.
All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever. For information, address Avid Reader Press Subsidiary Rights Department, 1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020.
First Avid Reader Press hardcover edition February 2023
AVID READER PRESS and colophon are trademarks of Simon & Schuster, Inc.
For information about special discounts for bulk purchases, please contact Simon & Schuster Special Sales at 1-866-506-1949 or business@simonandschuster.com.
The Simon & Schuster Speakers Bureau can bring authors to your live event. For more information or to book an event contact the Simon & Schuster Speakers Bureau at 1-866-248-3049 or visit our website at www.simonspeakers.com.
Interior design by Lexy East
Jacket design by Ben Wiseman
Author photograph © Mary Rafferty
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data has been applied for.
ISBN 978-1-6680-0942-0
ISBN 978-1-6680-0944-4 (ebook)
Christie Tate, B.F.F.
