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Acknowledgments
Danke Schön Deutschland! It may seem odd to thank an entire country, but if Germany as a whole had not embraced a willkommenskultur (“welcome culture”) that included my little Ami family, I would have learned nothing.
Specifically, I would like to thank the many people who informed this book—the experts, teachers, colleagues, parents, and friends who appear on these pages. They made the final manuscript so much richer than if it were one family’s story alone. I want to be sure to express special gratitude to a few Berlin families: the Harnischfegers, the Hassmanns, the Schulers, and the Wibawas, whose friendship made Berlin an even brighter place. I had great support from members of my Berlin writers’ group, in particular two fantastic and generous writers: Madhvi Ramani and Marian Ryan. I also want to acknowledge translator Jaime McGill who helped make my German-to-English translations more accurate.
Thanks to Belinda Luscombe, an editor at Time.com, for taking a chance on a new parenting writer, which resulted in the initial, wildly popular article on this topic. My friend and fellow expat Chiquira Wagner was the first to tell me I should write a book about German parenting. And Veilen Dank to Stefanie Chalberg, a German living in the United States—at the time a stranger to me—for picking up my article and sending it to her sister-in-law in New York City, who ultimately became my agent. She also took the time to read through the draft manuscript and give me her valuable perspective on the text as a native German.
I feel very fortunate to have Terra Chalberg as my agent. Her patience and insightful editing helped get the book proposal off the ground. I’m also grateful to my editor, Anna deVries, along with the fantastic team at Picador USA, for bringing this book to life.
Of course, none of this would have ever happened if not for my husband, Zac, who brought us to Germany in the first place, and for my two children, Sophia and Ozzie, who teach me lessons daily about the adventure of life. I love you all unendlich.
Index