There are two people who have profoundly influenced my personal and professional life. Ray Neinstein was one of them. I met Ray shortly after my twenty-fifth birthday when we were both working at the same language school in New York. He was the smartest person I had met. Ray had taught literature all over Eastern Europe, and it was his adventures that led to my falling for Eastern Europe. When I did a reading in Warsaw, Ray had prepared a list of Polish authors to read and places to see. When I was in Prague for another reading of my work, Ray arranged for a friend to meet me at the airport where I was flying in from Vienna. Ray’s friend became my good friend during my time in the Czech Republic and led to our own adventures. When I was in the UK for a presentation of my play Blood Sky at Birmingham Repertory Theatre, Ray asked his good friend Ian McEwan to meet me in London. What a gift it was to spend an hour over lunch with the great writer who was finishing his book that would become Atonement. There are many other wonderful adventures and stories I have collected thanks to my beloved friend who was so dear to me. Through Ray, I met the most dynamic literary figures. That was Ray, completely generous and loyal, the most loyal person I had known. Here we are at a party. The photo encapsulates how Ray always caught my attention with his brilliance and heart.