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Table of Contents

Title Page

Copyright Page

Dedication

 
ACT I - Are You Lost?

ACT II - Some Very Interesting Choices

ACT III - It ’s a Trick-Taking Game

ACT IV - Yeah, He’s a Runner

ACT V - I Got Lucky

 
Acknowledgements

BOOKS BY SARA RYAN

The Rules for Hearts
Author’s note: Some places that I’ve written about in this book are real, though I’ve changed details and added elements to suit my story. But Forest House and all its inhabitants are fictional.

 
 
 
VIKING

Published by Penguin Group

Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 345 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, U.S.A.
Penguin Books Ltd, Registered Offices: 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England First published in 2007 by Viking, a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.

 
 
All rights reserved

 
Lyrics quoted on page 122 are from “Palmcorder Yajna” by the Mountain Goats, C & P Cadmean Dawn [ASCAP], rights administered by Pacific Electric and used with permission of the artist.

LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA IS AVAILABLE

eISBN : 978-1-101-01486-8

for U. C., with love

CAST,IN ORDER OF APPEARANCE

BATTLE HALL DAVIES,18-year-old high school graduate, accepted to Reed College

 
NICHOLAS DAVIES,22, Battle’s older brother, a cab driver, resident of Forest House

 
MERYL DAVENPORT, 22, swimming instructor, resident of Forest House

 
AURORA KNEEDLER,46, owner of Forest House and artistic director of Theater Borealis

 
ROBERT CRACKNELL,50, resident of Forest House, set designer and builder, Aurora’s partner

 
CHARLES FAHEY,27, gardener, bike messenger, designer, resident of Forest House

 
HENRY O’BRIAN,55, donor to and actor in Theater Borealis

 
DAMIAN J. WOLF,28, actor in Theater Borealis

 
A NNALISA TANNAHILL,34, actor in Theater Borealis

 
ELLERY TANNAHILL-LIPPMAN,11, Annalisa’s daughter, actor in Theater Borealis

 
THE MINIONS,assorted genders, ages, Robert’s helpers in the Theater Borealis scene shop

 
LUCKY,3, a dog

PROLOGUE

Church basement, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, almost five years ago

(Continues…)

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Excerpted from "Rules for Hearts"
by .
Copyright © 2009 Sara Ryan.
Excerpted by permission of Penguin Young Readers Group.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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