The Secret Speech

Zoya moved toward her:

— Elena, I have something to tell you.

Leo stood up:

— Before you do, why don’t I tell you a bedtime story?

Elena smiled:

— One that you made up?

Leo nodded:

— One that I made up.

Zoya wiped away her tears and took hold of Leo’s hand.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

My editors, Suzanne Baboneau at Simon & Schuster UK and Mitch Hoffman at Grand Central Publishing, are quite simply the best editors any writer could wish for. I feel exceptionally lucky. And I am hugely grateful to them.

Particular thanks go to Eva-Marie Hippel at Dumont, a good friend with a meticulous eye for detail. Also thanks to Jonny Geller at Curtis Brown and Robert Bookman at CAA for all their support. Robert Bookman has an amazing gift for connecting people, and he put me in touch with Michael Korda, whose wonderful book Journey to a Revolution: A Personal Memoir and History of the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 (HarperCollins, 2006) was extremely useful research. I appreciate Michael taking the time to answer my questions.

I can’t remember which writer spoke about the need to have trusted readers — perhaps every writer has spoken about it. I have two, Ben Stephenson and Alex Arlango: My love and thanks to both.

FURTHER READING

The books I mentioned at the end of Child 44 were also crucial to the writing of this book and formed the bedrock of the research for this novel. In addition, William Taubman’s biography Khrushchev: The Man and His Era (Simon & Schuster, 2003) was indispensable.

I’ve already mentioned Michael Korda’s book on his experiences in the Hungarian Revolution. Equally inspirational, and important, were Victor Sebestyen’s Twelve Days: Revolution 1956: How the Hungarians Tried to Topple Their Soviet Masters (Weidenfeld & Nicholson, 2006) and The Hungarian Revolution of 1956: Reform, Revolt and Repression, 1953–1963, edited by Gyorgy Litvan (translated by Janos M. Bak and Lyman H. Legters, Longman, 1966).

I’d like to make special note of one autobiography, Shallow Graves in Siberia, by Michael Krupa (Minerva Press, 1997). It is an extraordinary story, deeply moving, and it reminded me that no matter how oppressive the adversary, someone always manages to find a way above it.

I owe these authors a huge debt. I should note that any inaccuracies are entirely my own.