Before I Fall

And kissing Kent, because that’s when I realized that time doesn’t matter. That’s when I realized that certain moments go on forever. Even after they’re over they still go on, even after you’re dead and buried, those moments are lasting still, backward and forward, on into infinity. They are everything and everywhere all at once.

They are the meaning.

I’m not scared, if that’s what you’re wondering. The moment of death is full of sound and warmth and light, so much light it fills me, absorbs me: a tunnel of light shooting away, arcing up and up and up, and if singing were a feeling it would be this, this light, this lifting, like laughing…

The rest you have to find out for yourself.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

In no particular order, many thanks…

To Stephen Barbara, the ultimate hustler and the greatest agent in the world; to Lexa Hillyer, for being the first to read any part of Before I Fall and love it; to the incredible Brenda Bowen, for being the first to believe in it; and to the wonderful Molly O’Neill, for her enthusiasm and for making me believe.

To Rosemary Brosnan, for her intelligence, acuity, and sensitivity; to everyone at HarperTeen, for the insane quantities of support and for giving me Magnolia cupcakes when I was jet-lagged.

To Cameron McClure of the Donald Maas Literary Agency, for her hard work and continued advocacy on behalf of the book.

To DUB Pies in Brooklyn for keeping me caffeinated and happy.

To Dujeous, for the generous use of their lyrics. Check them out at www.dujeous.net.

To Mary Davison, who might teach us all something about living life to the fullest.

To all of my amazing, brilliant friends, for inspiring and challenging me; and in particular to Patrick Manasse, for being a patient listener and a tough critic.

To Olivier, for being immensely supportive, even when I was struggling.

To Deirdre Fulton, Jacqueline Novak, and Laura Smith, a single word: love.

To my parents, for filling our house with books I could fall in love with—and later, for encouraging me to pursue my dreams—and always, for their constant love and support.

To my brilliant sister, for being someone I will always look up to.

And lastly, to Pete: For encouraging me to go to graduate school and helping me get on my feet once I did; for letting me frantically edit in Harbor Springs; for always being so proud of me; and because whatever I was writing, I was always trying to write my way back to you.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Lauren Oliver was previously an editorial assistant at a publishing company in New York. A graduate of the University of Chicago and the MFA program at New York University, she is now a full-time writer and lives in Brooklyn, New York. This is her first novel.

You can visit her online at www.laurenoliverbooks.com and www.myspace.com/laurenoloverbooks .