Dispatches from the Edge: A Memoir of War, Disasters, and Survival (20 page)

BOOK: Dispatches from the Edge: A Memoir of War, Disasters, and Survival

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T
HE GREAT MAJORITY
of quotes in this book are from taped interviews I conducted. Those that are not are based on notes and journals I’ve kept over the years. There are no composite characters, no made-up stories. Memory is fallible, and in some cases my notes were not as detailed as I would have liked. Some dates may be off by a few days here or there, but I have gone to great lengths to ensure that this book is factually correct.

Acknowledgments

I
HAVE BEEN WRITING
much of this book in my head for years, but I would not have committed to actually putting the words on paper were it not for the encouragement of my literary agent and childhood friend Luke Janklow, and Dan Peres, who first asked me to write for
Details
magazine. I owe them both a debt of gratitude.

Jonathan Burnham and Tim Duggan have been remarkable editors, and I am grateful for their enthusiasm and insight. I’d also like to thank Jenna Dolan for doing such a careful copyediting job. Writing may be a solitary effort, reporting for television, however, is not, and over the years I’ve been lucky to work with a number of very talented producers from whom I’ve learned a great deal—in particular, I’d like to thank David Neuman, Mitchell Koss, Jim Gerety, Kathy Christensen, Jon Klein, David Doss, Charlie Moore, Kathleen Friery, and Andy Court. I am also thankful for the counsel and kindness of my friend and agent Carol Cooper, who believed in me when many others seemed not to, and Jeff Young who has helped me more than I can ever say.

I would also not be the person I am today were it not for May McLinden and Nora Marley. Their selfless devotion over the years is impossible to quantify or ever adequately thank them for. I’d also like to acknowledge my good friends who helped me during the writing of this book. I’d like to thank Julio for his support and calm counsel without which this book would not have been possible. I’d also like to thank Steve, Andrea, and Kirk for reading advance copies and giving me their honest opinions. Finally, over the years I have been welcomed into many people’s homes and lives. They’ve trusted me with their stories, and I am extraordinarily grateful for that.

About the Author

ANDERSON COOPER
joined CNN in 2001 and has anchored his own program,
Anderson Cooper 360°
, since 2003. He had previously served as a correspondent for
ABC News
and was a foreign correspondent for
Channel One News
. Cooper has won several awards for his work, including an Emmy. He graduated from Yale University in 1989 and also studied Vietnamese at the University of Hanoi. He writes regularly for
Details
magazine.

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Collins
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Credits

Jacket design by Chip Kidd

Front jacket photographs by Brent Stirton/Getty Images for CNN

DISPATCHES FROM THE EDGE
. Copyright © 2006 by Anderson Cooper. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, 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 hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

Microsoft Reader April 2006 ISBN 0-06-118985-5

All photographs courtesy of the author unless otherwise noted.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Cooper, Anderson.

Dispatches from the edge : a memoir of war, disasters, and survival / Anderson Cooper.— 1st ed.

p. cm.

ISBN-13: 978-0-06-113238-4 (acid-free paper)

ISBN-10: 0-06-113238-1 (acid-free paper)

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