Joined in 2023 
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63 About this deal
But what if she’s wrong? What if Luka Williams is the only thing separating her from a madness too terrifying to fathom? That’s enough, Miranda.” The sharpness of his words slice through the air. “We can’t talk about this. Not here.” Despite taking two Excedrin Migraine pills, a headache pierces my left temple. Clasping my hands in front of my waist, I watch Missy set up the Ouija board while everyone else laughs and clowns around. Nobody has noticed me yet. Which means it’s not too late to turn around and leave. As soon as the thought occurs, Missy spots me in the doorway. “Hey everybody, look who’s here. It’s Teresa.” She raises a plastic red cup in my direction. I’m pretty sure she’s not drinking water. “Aren’t you going to come in? We’re about to have a séance.” She’s going to have to speak with a government-mandated psychiatrist,” Mom whispers. “Nothing about this is safe.”
When my brain tires from trying to tease it all apart, I grab my worn copy of I Know This Much is True by Wally Lamb—one of the many banned books I’ve come to own—and thumb to the place I earmarked the night before. The book’s about this dude with a schizophrenic brother. It’s not good for me. It makes me wonder. But I can’t stop reading. It’s nice to lose myself in somebody else’s messed up problems for a change, even if those problems are fictional. Rose—a senior with beautiful ebony skin and a killer volleyball spike—wraps her long leg over the arm rest of the love seat. “You can light all the candles you want, the only thing this board can do is teach J.R. the alphabet.” From the imaginations of Kully Thiarai and Alan Lane, the co-directors of The Awakening, The Gifting is the final chapter of Leeds’ Year of Culture. Romance: the two mains charries (unmarried) spend the night alone in the same room (nothing goes on though), there’s holding of hands, and two brief kisses. Once starting this book I could not put it down. Although this book is your typical young adult story, the story-line is interesting and a little different. I liked Tess and Luka, who are the main characters but I also liked the other connected characters. There is depth to some of the characters but I feel as if there is more to come.Sydney puts her fingers on the pointer, the planchette. Whatever it’s called. And I have the same feeling I had in Mr. Greeley’s Current Events class, when that monster stared up at me from my folder—a coldness that won’t go away. A coldness so deep I can feel it in my bones. I fist my hands in my lap. With new music from Rash Dash and stunning theatrical design by artist Keith Khan, this live performance combines stage illusion song and story to create a majestic final moment in our Year of Culture. What to expect
We invite you in.” Sydney’s voice has turned into an exaggerated moan. I peek at her through squinted eyes. “Tell us who you are.” I tell my heart to calm down. I tell myself I’m being a spaz. I tell myself I will never, ever fit in if I can’t do a stupid séance with a group of teenagers on a Parker Brothers Ouija board. But then something moves in the corner of the room, near the hallway, and I squeeze my eyelids shut.
Over the course of an hour, you will be taken on a magical journey by host Khorin Khorin Gurav through twelve individual but connected tales that celebrate stories and the power they can have. If you could see the demons seeking to ruin—even kill—people, would you be terrified? What if no one else saw them? What if your family and peers think you’re crazy? Themes. There are themes of seeking the truth, loyalty, and standing up for what’s right. As well as strong pro-life themes. In this future American society where every pregnancy has a screening and if the child doesn’t pass the healthy requirements and is deemed to be a future burden to society they are to be rid of or the parents face the consequences. You’re right on time!” She grabs Pete’s hand and pulls him inside. “We just got out the Ouija board.” You think Pete is exaggerating?” Mom’s voice wobbles. “James, our son said she was hitting and scratching herself. He said she was screaming for something to get off her.”
Mom never complains about the moving, so long as Dad finds a house that is at least fifteen minutes away from the city. According to her, any place with a population over fifteen thousand is too dangerous for children. Plus, she thinks if Pete and I go to smaller schools, we’ll have an easier time fitting in. What she doesn’t realize is that smaller schools also make it easier to stand out. Especially if you’re me. The only reason I’m ever invited anywhere is because girls think if I come, my brother will too. And girls really like Pete, even though he’s a skinny sophomore. The Gifting is, in part, inspired by Northern Dreaming. Northern Dreaming is a free book published by LEEDS 2023 and the British Library that will be gifted to every child in Leeds born in 2023. The book is a collection of poetry and stories by 18 early career and published writers. It will be available to collect, for free, from various locations in Leeds from Thursday 19 October 2023 including from all Leeds libraries. Sydney wears the kind of expression that says she’s trying hard to act serious, but a smile makes the corners of her lips twitch. She clears her throat and waits for the giggling and whispering to cease. “Who is with us in this house?” she asks in a low, spooky voice. Dustin and Missy giggle. “We’d like to speak with you.”
What really matters? In her high school, it’s all about an external identity that’s donned like a mask. However, in Christ believers are invited to throw away masks and walk in genuine care for others. That’s hard to do at seventeen, especially when the partner in one’s experience is the most sought-after boy in the school. You have to know where to look.” She wags her eyebrows. “I told Rose that this house was built on an Indian burial ground and she doesn’t believe me.” Other: there’s appearances of evil spirits (demons?). Several gruesome deaths and suicide none of which are described in graphic detail (just enough to evoke the sympathy of the reader). The topic of mental illness and depression is spoken of throughout the book. The politically correct term is Native Americans, Syd.” Dustin pops a handful of M&M’s into his mouth. It’s August on the panhandle of Florida and I can’t get warm. The icy chill that woke me in the night refuses to leave. It hovers nearby when I get ready for my first day of junior year, and it follows me into the kitchen where Dad reads the morning newspaper.
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