The Americans (74 page)

"Should have known? Why?" With her voice full of love, she said, "You've never been an average man, Gideon. You've made a mark on this fam- ily that your children and their children will remember forever. Be proud of that. Be proud of them." He didn't answer, but he gave an almost imperceptible nod. In his mind he heard bugles blowing; Stuart singing; cannon roaring. How quickly it had all gone. Too quickly- The lights on an outward bound steamer held Julia's attention for a moment or so. She didn't see Gideon stiffen briefly, then appear to relax. When she looked at him again, his good eye was closed. He sat motionless. The wind stirred his gray hair and beard. She touched him and only then realized he wasn't asleep. * She clasped his shoulder to verify her suspicion. "Oh, my dearest-was she whispered. But as the first tears came to her eyes, she saw that he was smiling. Afterword This novel brings to an end a personal adventure that began with the ringing of a telephone in Dayton, Ohio in March of 1973. What has happened since is stunning new proof, in a cynical time, that the American dream still works. When The Bastard appeared in October 1974, no one had heard of the book-and quite a few people didn't want to speak the name aloud, let alone be seen with a copy. Not a very auspicious beginning.

Yet in this country, miracles can and do happen still. I take very little of the credit. I continue to maintain that the success of the American Bicentennial Series-now the Kent Family Chronicles-was created not so much by the books themselves as by the countless readers who, one by one, told other readers about the series. No publishing company's computer can foresee such a circumstance, nor any editorial committee duplicate it at will-though publishers devoutly wish the reverse was true in each case. In writing The Americans, I was faced with a problem common to all the novels in the series-too much fascinating background material, and too few pages to contain it. The front matter of The Bastard still haunts me. In it, I stated that the series would carry the Kents to 1976, which of course was the original plan. But just as human beings have a habit of doing, some members of my fictional family went their own ways, too. Thus, as this is written, another ninety-plus years of American history await the imprint of the Kents. After the final book was announced, a good many readers wrote to ask that the series be continued. A couple of faithful fans of my old science fiction even suggested carrying the Kents into the next century. And in 1976, one youngster sent me a letter containing this idea. In the 1920's, a metal cylinder carrying a super-powerful infant from another planet is discovered in a field by a kindly farmer named Kent, who is shown to be Philip's descendants. The farmer and his wife adopt the child, christen him Clark, and ... the rest is delightful speculation. It's not inconceivable that one of these days the story of the Kents might be resumed. But eight long books in a little over five years represents a sizable piece of work. It's time to step back, take a breath, reflect on the past and consider some alternatives for the future. Institutions that were helpful while I was researching certain sections of this novel include the New York Public Library, the Newport Historical Society, the Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, and the Widener Library, Harvard University. For guidance to valuable source material, I am indebted to Professor William Bullough of the History Department of the University of California at Hayward, and Jim Eason, who put me in touch with Professor Bullough. Special thanks are owed to Mrs. Anne Donate, Curator of the Waring Historical Library, Medical University of South Carolina, who opened the library's fine collection of old texts and equipment for my use, and coordinated the vetting of one key section of the manuscript by a number of experts. Thanks are also due to Verne H. Dodson, M.d.; Bernard Ferrara, M.d.; Mrs. Rose Ann Ferrick; Ms. Debra Kordansky; Signorina Anna Pani; Professors Vincent Serpa and Cornelius Van Zwoll; and Mrs. Nancy Topcik and her father-in-law, A. A. Topcik, M.d. It would have been impossible for me to locate and obtain many of the necessary research materials without the unstinting help of the Beaufort County, South Carolina, library system, and especially the Hilton Head Island branch under the able and friendly direction of Mrs. Lucille Muir. I cannot say the following too strongly, however. None of the institutions or individuals mentioned is in any way responsible for errors of fact or judgment which the reader may find in The Americans. Beverly Lewis of Jove Books provided deft editorial guidance along the way. And this is an appropriate place to extend thanks to Sondra Ordover, formerly of Jove, and to Stan Newman of MCA Publishing. Their patience

and good counsel were most helpful during the unsettled days during which Jove was being acquired by MCA. And, of course, I continue to owe thanks to the producer of the series, Lyle Kenyon Engel for a fruitful association. It's been gratifying for me to chart the kind of readership the Kent Family Chronicles have attracted. Some novels are read mostly by women, others largely by men-but if incoming mail is any guide, the Kent novels have drawn an audience divided just about equally between the sexes. Readers come literally from all walks of life-career women to homemakers, corporation presidents to prison inmates. No one age group dominates. Students write me, and so do men and women far older. Nothing could give me more pleasure. The story of our country, which I have attempted to research and present accurately in these eight novels, belongs to all of us. And so, to the millions of Americans who have adopted the Kents as a sort of second family-as I have-my everlasting thanks. JOHN JAKES About the Author JOHN JAKES was born in Chicago. He is a graduate of DePauw University, and took his M.a. in literature at Ohio State. He sold his first short story during his second year of college, and his first book twelve months later. Since then he has published more than 200 short stories and over 50 books-chiefly suspense, nonfiction for young people and, most recently, science fiction. With the publication of The Furies, volume four of the Kent Family Chronicles, he became the first author in history to land three novels on the best seller lists within a single year. The author is married, the father of four children, and lists among his organizations the Authors Guild, the Dramatists Guild, and Science Fiction Writers of America. In both 1976 and 1977 he was awarded honorary doctorates for his contribution to the Bicentennial observance. He says the most satisfying aspect of the phenomenal success of the Kent family novels is "the mail which reports that a reader has been motivated to seek out some good nonfiction in order to read about American history in greater detail. That kind of direct response is what writing is all about- and it makes all the hard work worthwhile."