Argos (25 page)

Authors: Ralph Hardy

BOOK: Argos

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

T
o my detriment I tend to keep my writing close to the vest, but a few people were instrumental in bringing
Argos
to print, and I wish to acknowledge them here. My children, Kabir and Shalini, never rolled their eyes when I told them about my idea for
Argos
, and for that I thank them. Jonas Horwitz and David Hardy read early drafts and made useful suggestions. Tom and Laura McNeal, two fine writers I admire tremendously, introduced me to my agent, the late George Nicholson. If there is a pantheon for young adult publishers, George stands alone on Mount Olympus. I deeply appreciate the efforts of Erica Silverman and the fine people at Sterling Lord Literistic, who continue to support my writing. To my editor at HarperCollins, Toni Markiet, I extend my most sincere gratitude. She took a chance on a fledgling writer with a
strange idea for a book and let me remain true to my vision for
Argos
. Finally, my wife, Anu Kumar, never wavered in her support of my writing habit, encouraging me through fallow periods and rejections and making my successes all the more sweet, and for that I could never say thank you enough.

A
note on sources: I think I first encountered the story of Odysseus through Tennyson, in the great poem
Ulysses
. I then read Robert Fagles's version sometime in junior high, and in college I read Richmond Lattimore's
The Odyssey
. Since I don't read ancient Greek, I dipped into all three again as I wrote
Argos
and found them just as good as I remember.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

RALPH HARDY
graduated from the University of North Carolina with a degree in English and received his MFA from Columbia College, Chicago. He now lives in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, with his wife and children and a dog named Harvey, who is nothing like Argos. He is the author of
Lefty: A Novel
and a number of short stories. For more information, go to
www.ralphhardyfiction.com
.

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CREDITS

Hand lettering by David Coulson

Cover design by Aurora Parlagreco

COPYRIGHT

ARGOS
: The Story of Odysseus as Told by His Loyal Dog. Copyright Â© 2016 by Ralph Hardy. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

www.harpercollinschildrens.com

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Names: Hardy, Ralph, date, author.

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Title: Argos : the story of Odysseus as told by his loyal dog / Ralph Hardy.

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Description: New York, NY : HarperCollins Publishers, [2016] | Summary: Retells the epic tale of Odysseus, the ancient Greek hero who encounters witches and other obstacles on his journey home after fighting in the Trojan War, told from the point of view of the steadfast companion who never gives up hope of his master's safe return.

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Identifiers: LCCN 2015029169 | ISBN 9780062396785 (hardback)

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EPub Edition Â© May 2016 ISBN 9780062396808

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Classification: LCC PZ7.1.H367 Ar 2016 | DDC [Fic]âdc23 LC record available at http://lccn.loc.gov/2015029169

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