““But this is where fact and fiction diverge, because Cecily and Zimmy did have a child, a son, Jeremy, who is my father. Cecily and Zimmy remained happily married for fifty-three years. My grandpa died in 1987; Grandma survived him by nearly two decades. She died peacefully in her sleep, at home, at the age of one hundred, shortly after welcoming her first great-granddaughter into the world (and receiving a birthday card from the queen). Unlike the eponymous Cecily, in real life, Cecily was good-natured, though she did complain of boredom a lot. She adored art, food, and books and always encouraged me to write. This is not the first time she has been featured in a work of fiction. Prior to Miss Cecily's Recipes for Exceptional Ladies, I published four novels under the pseudonym Stella Newman. In my first, the bestseller, Pear Shaped, the heroine's grandmother is based on Cecily. I suspect she'd have been pleased about that, and even more pleased to be taking center stage now. I was privileged to have her as a grandmother.””
