![]() ![]() It took me some time to identify the reasons for my surprise. ![]() Sitting there, thinking quickly and quietly as the question progressed toward me, I realized that one of the things I found surprising was seeing a Christian identify their faith as the reason for fighting against racism. Part of it, I knew, was the comfort and ease that he had in talking about his faith in the workplace, but it was more than that. ![]() “And I believe our world should reflect that.”Īs the question worked its way around the circle I sat, stunned, trying to figure out why that had taken me so off guard. “I’m here because I believe we are all equal in the eyes of the Lord,” he said, looking around the meeting room. What I didn’t expect was the first response, from an older white man in a sweater and suit jacket. Surely some of the people attending the Racial Equity Institute’s two-day course about systemic racism were there reluctantly, only participating as part of their job. Uncovering systemic oppression is difficult, unpleasant, emotionally taxing work. I looked around the circle of my coworkers, more than a little wary of the answers, steeling myself for a fight. “Why,” the facilitator asked, “are you here today? What makes you want to do this work?” Today’s post includes descriptions of racist violence and racial trauma. ![]() Editor’s note: This is part of Luke Babb’s “ Reckoning” series. ![]()
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![]() As I fel, several demon creatures flew out of the sky to catch me. I dreamed I was back on the roof and lost my footing. I dreamed I was in a forest again, naked and bleeding and surrounded by fireflies. I dreamed I was floating above my room, my back flat against the ceiling, watching myself sleep as long spider legs trickled out from underneath my bed. It was Creepy Clown Lady saying, “Don’t let her trick you. ![]() Somewhere far away I heard my mother whisper, “Sorry.”Īnother voice penetrated while the world dropped beneath me. “You,” I started to say but my mouth flapped shut. I couldn’t even trust my own parents anymore. They had been in the tea and I had drank al of it. That’s why my parents didn’t press the pil s. The other was that I had been drugged, in general. One was that I was reminded of being in Red Fox when Sarah had drugged the tea I was drinking with peyote. ![]() I looked at it with my heavy eyes and was hit with two thoughts. ![]() ![]() ![]() They follow Pip all the way into a spooky mansion. ![]() They decide to visit him at the hospital and take a shortcut through the woods but they see a ghost-like vision of Pip running away from them and are convinced this whole thing is a hoax. But when they go to meet him at his house, they see him being loaded into an ambulance, the poor lad has appendicitis. The small group plan to meet their friend Joe (known as Pip). ![]() The film opens with the narrator describing a small towns Halloween preparation and we meet our main characters, Jenny, Ralph, Wally and Tom. Ray Bradbury voices the narrator and the film even boasts voice talents of Leonard Nimoy as Mr. It is based on the 1972 book of the same name by Ray Bradbury and while there are some changes, mostly the animated film stays true to the book. The Halloween Tree was released in 1993 on ABC before being released on VHS and making its way across the pond to the UK where I found it on the shelf of my local rental store. My absolute favorite of these was The Halloween Tree, and it’s this film that I want to talk to you about today. When I was little, I loved going Trick-or-Treating, but I also loved making my own costumes, reading scary books (Goosebumps were a favorite) and watching spooky films. These days I love decorating, getting dressed up and giving out sweets to the small monsters that come to my door. Halloween has always been one of my favorite holidays. ![]() ![]() ![]() The author's great skill is to draw you into the world she creates, so that reading her books is like gossiping with old friends * DAILY EXPRESS * Binchy is a consummate storyteller who involves the reader in the world she creates. ![]() She relies on dialogue and on keeping up a cracking pace * DAILY MAIL * A tender novel of the pleasures and pitfalls of friendship, TARA ROAD is an ultra-modern love story for women, about women, between women that is sure to delight * NEWSDAY * Engrossing * WALL STREET JOURNAL * You can see why, for a legion of female readers, Maeve Binchy is a one-woman opiate of the people * EVENING STANDARD * She is one of the few writers who can pull at your heartstrings. ![]() Her great gift is to suck her reader into the drama of everyday lives without fuss. An irresistible tale * ELLE * What is Maeve Binchy's magic? Every time she publishes a novel the race is on to the armchair or the poolside seat, telephones fall eerily silent. ![]() ![]() Naturally, a few years later, I became a university lecturer and organised therapy sessions on a daily basis. We would all pretend to be wise without fear of contradiction. Most swore never to repeat the experience. It was a slow journey, but some of us graduated. But over time, we grew more confident and actually dared ask for explanations. So long as we stayed silent, we need never reveal how addicted we were to our own ignorance. To talk in a university tutorial session is to admit lack of preparation, and no-one wanted to do that. When we entered and met the convener, no-one wanted to talk. ![]() We few met briefly outside the room and exchanged anxious nods. We Are All Completely Fine by Daryl Gregory ( Tachyon Press, 2014) explores the social and psychological dynamics of group therapy sessions. ![]() ![]() But Oraya will be forced to ally with those intent on killing her, and what she learns about herself and her father along the way may just change her entire world. But all that is about to change Oraya is set to compete in the Kejari, a contest that promises any one wish to the victor. She’s grown up in the House of Night, separate from everyone, prey to the predators that surround her. Oraya was rescued from the wreckage of her family home as a baby by the vampire king, Vincent. There is nothing like the feeling of sinking into this kind of story for me, and I fucking loved this. ![]() I laughed, I swooned, I gasped, I obsessed over these characters. Those are the stains on one’s innocence that never fade.” The blood that spilled over that marble floor, though… Not the blood that spilled between her thighs that shaped her. It was not the sex that changed the girl forever. “Strange, that girls are so often told that the loss of their virginity marks a threshold between girlhood and womanhood, as if it fundamentally alters them in some way. ![]() Review: The Serpent and the Wings of Night (Carissa Broadbent) ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() In 1930, after losing the presidential election, Vargas rose to power under a provisional presidency following an armed revolution, remaining until 1934 when he was elected president under a new constitution. Afterward, Vargas served as Minister of Finance under President Washington Luís before resigning to head Rio Grande do Sul as state president, during which he had an active tenure and introduced many policies. He entered national politics as a member of the Chamber of Deputies. After returning to the state Legislative Assembly, Vargas led troops during Rio Grande do Sul's 1923 civil war. He began his political career as district attorney, soon becoming a state deputy prior to a brief departure from politics. Due to his long and controversial tenure as Brazil's provisional, constitutional, and dictatorial leader, he is considered by historians as the most influential Brazilian politician of the 20th century.īorn in São Borja, Rio Grande do Sul, to a powerful local family, Vargas had a short stint in the Army before entering law school. Getúlio Dornelles Vargas ( Brazilian Portuguese: 19 April 1882 – 24 August 1954) was a Brazilian lawyer and politician who served as the 14th and 17th president of Brazil, from 1930 to 1945 and from 1951 to 1954, respectively. ![]() ![]() ![]() Because of her double identity as a girl masquerading as a boy, small size, magic, and impatience, Alanna often questions her own character. In the second volume, Alanna also acquires the magical cat 'Faithful', who accompanies her thereafter (Faithful is hinted to be an immortal, but his origins remain unknown. Her principal rivals are classmate Ralon of Malven and Jonathan's kinsman Duke Roger. Alanna befriends characters of a wide background during the quartet including George, the commoner king of the thieves the scholar Sir Myles of Olau senior students Gareth (Gary) of Naxen, Raoul of Goldenlake, and Prince Jonathan of Conté Princess Thayet of Sarain Liam Ironarm, a martial-arts champion and Buriram (Buri) Tourakom, Thayet's bodyguard. Throughout the four novels Alanna struggles with her gender identity, as well as going through puberty and bullying. ![]() Noblewoman Alanna of Trebond, disguised as the boy "Alan", exchanges places with her twin brother Thom, to go to the royal palace in the city of Corus to train for knighthood, while Thom studies magic. The series consists of four books: Alanna: The First Adventure (1983), In the Hand of the Goddess (1984), The Woman Who Rides Like a Man (1986) and Lioness Rampant (1988). The Song of the Lioness is a young adult series of fantasy novels published in the 1980s by Tamora Pierce. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() The paradise of bachelors and the tartarus of maids -įor me, Moby Dick is compelling for its flaws as much as its genius. In his introduction Frederick Busch discusses Melville's preoccupation with his "correspondence with the world," his quarrel with silence, and why fiction was, for Melville,"a matter of life and death." The other selections here-"Bartleby," "The Encantadas," "Benito Cereno," and "The Piazza"-also illuminate, in varying guises, the way fictions are created and shared with a wider society. "Billy Budd, Sailor," a classic confrontation between good and evil, is the story of an innocent young man unable to defend himself against a wrongful accusation. His sense of isolation lies at the heart of these later works. Stung by the critical reception and lack of commercial success of his previous two works, Moby-Dick and Pierre, Herman Melville became obsessed with the difficulties of communicating his vision to readers. Tales of compelling power by one of America's greatest writers ![]() ![]() ![]() When Esther is told to stop hanging around with a new friend, however, Esther begins to question her family’s beliefs. ![]() And the day after seeing a ring around the moon, their family does experience hardship in the form of the dad losing his job. When she dreamed about a wedding, a neighbor did have an accident and die. When the mom dropped a spoon at supper, company did come. It’s hard not to, when so many of them come true. She has also convinced them to believe in signs. The mom has taught the family to not step on a crack and to hang up horseshoes. First, Esther’s family is highly superstitious. For that reason, I happily accepted Gayle Rosengren’s request to review her debut novel What the Moon Said and am now delighted to recommend it to you.Ī couple of aspects of the plot make What the Moon Said original. Each offering to date has engaged me, while also transporting me to another time and place. ![]() Through Advanced Reader Copies, I am becoming a fan of historical fiction for young people. ![]() |