From A Snicker of Magic Mama slowed the van and leaned her arm across me. "Take a look, June Bug. We're here." She pointed to a sign that somebody'd painted up and shoved sideways into the hillside. A flickering spotlight shone up at the words: Midnight Gulch, Tennessee A Proper Place to Call Home "Used to read different, before they painted over it," Mama said. "It used to say--" "A magical place to call home." I whispered. I didn't need her to tell me. I could already see the word, MAGICAL, shining as bright as sunshine-letters, even through all those layers of paint. I could see other words too. The stars above us spelled out: summer wonder homespun I heard a poem tangled up inside a rush of the midnight songs the crickets were whistling: Finally, At last, Forever, and now, Here you are. I didn't say another word to Mama that night, but I could feel something good even then: the YES in my heart, the swirling-around in my belly, the prickly, tingling all the way from the freckle on my finger to the tip of my pinky-toe. That much wonderful could only mean one thing: There was still magic in Midnight Gulch. This is how I turned it loose . . . Excerpted from A Snicker of Magic by Natalie Lloyd All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.