That Other Me (36 page)

First and foremost, I am deeply indebted to my family for their boundless love and support: my father and mother, my three brothers, Samir, Anwar, and Shehab, and their wives, Souad, Cyma, and Lamees, who are the sisters I never had.

Special thanks to my good friend Ali Khalifa Al-Rumaithi, for his nuggets of insight of all things Emirati, for his limitless imagination when it comes to plot twists and narrative possibilities.

Tons of gratitude goes to Mimi Raad and Lina Matta for their energy as they pored over the various chapters of the book as they were being written, for their enthusiasm at each of our regular meetings to discuss what they'd read. Every writer needs such a dynamic pair.

A salute goes to my vivacious editor, Jillian Verrillo, for her acute observations and grasp of the big picture, both of which have made this a stronger novel. And not forgetting my copyeditor, Julie Hersh, for her exacting expertise.

My sincere gratitude goes to my agent, Emile Khoury, who always delivers when it counts, and the HarperCollins' team for embracing the novel wholeheartedly.

A big applause to the spirited Dr. Hala Sarhan, Arabic talk-show host extraordinaire, for the valuable information she provided and a bow to all the film, music, and media celebrities of the Arab world whom I met for getting excited about the book to the point that they felt they had to divulge a behind-the-scenes secret or two. Much appreciation goes to Mahra Al-Shamsi and Badriya Al-Marri for the vivid accounts of their days living in the sakan as Emirati students in Cairo, and to physiotherapist Semir Bakija for information on recuperating stroke victims.

Thanks to my team of first-draft readers: Cyma, Pia, Samer, and my cousin Sana', who also created the lyrics to “Only Me, Lonely Me.”

And finally, now and always, hats off to everyone I meet who says, “I can't wait for the next book.”

MAHA GARGASH
has a degree in radio and television from George Washington University in Washington, D.C., and a master's from Goldsmiths College, University of London. In 1985 she joined Dubai Television to pursue her interest in documentaries. Through directing television programs that deal with traditional Arab societies, she became involved in research and scriptwriting. Her first novel,
The Sand Fish
, was an international bestseller. She lives in Dubai.

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The Sand Fish

Cover design by Janet Hansen

Cover photograph © visualspace / Getty Images

THAT OTHER ME.
Copyright © 2016 by Maha Gargash. 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.

FIRST EDITION

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Gargash, Maha.

 That other me : a novel / Maha Gargash. — First edition.

      pages ; cm

 ISBN 978-0-06-239138-4 (softcover) — ISBN 978-0-06-239139-1 (ebook) 1. Women—United Arab Emirates—Social conditions—Fiction. 2. Young women—Social life and customs—Fiction. 3. United Arab Emirates—History—20th century—Fiction. 4. Domestic fiction. I. Title.

 PR9570.U543G378 2016

 823'.92—dc23

2015011785

ISBN 978-0-06-239138-4

EPub Edition January 2016 ISBN 9780062391391

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