Do You Hear Me, Mr. Lincoln? by Judith Caseley; Graphia Books: New York, 2009; $6.99 Life has changed for Sierra Goodman after the death of her father. Her grieving mother has gone into a house-cleaning rage, her brother is too young to interpret how she feels and suffers nightmares, and her friends are clueless about […]
Infinite Field
We are like a grain of sand on an endless beach A soft whisper echoed off the walls. “Jess!” I jerked into consciousness, tense and trembling. The door was closed. The clock ticked as usual. The lopsided calendar above my mahogany dresser showed the same picture of a sun sinking behind the mountains […]
L’eau/Water
Pour moi, l’eau c’est la plage Où vit ma grand-mère, Les grands ours bruns Qui rôdent autour de la maison, L’océan qui me chante une berceuse, Le bateau de mon oncle qui part À la pêche. Pour moi, l’eau C’est une vague salée. For me, water is the island Where my grandmother lives, The big […]
Blue Eyes
“Hey, Ben, do you wanna play basketball?” Nick asked There are some things in life that you never forget—no matter how much time passes, they just cling to your heart and mind like the stubby fingers of a kindergartner clutching his mother’s hand on the first day of school. Special moments, like the day when […]
Memories
The sunlight slanted through her window, dancing merrily around the room: the crayon drawings still taped on the walls, the beanbag chair sitting invitingly on the floor, the magenta streak on her desk from when she had drawn a particularly messy oil pastel scene. Kathy smiled, lost in the deluge of memories. This room was […]
Akira and the Wolf
Akira was a dog. Nitia was a wolf. Akira never cared to think about dogs and wolves living together. Not until Nitia. Akira always thought about wolves, and why they were hated so much. She watched them run through the woods and heard their howls. Her owner, who was a hunter, often said wolves were […]
After All, You’re Callie Boone
After All, You’re Callie Boone, by Winnie Mack; Feiwel and Friends: New York, 2010; $16.99 “Oh fish sticks, tartar, and a side of fries!” Being called a loser by your former best friend, having to live together with stinking ferrets, and doing one extremely public belly flop is definitely not Callie Boone’s idea of a […]
All You Need Is Love
Addie didn’t—couldn’t—believe what she was hearing Addie was perched precariously on the edge of her ruffled bed. Her mother was seated next to her, chewing on her lower lip as she so often did when something was troubling her. “Addie,” her mother started, then stopped to wipe her eyes on the sleeve of her red […]
Fog
Every evening a tumbling, frothy white waterfall cascades over the mountains. Its thick, swirly, blanket settles among the trees, and oozes into the valley. It keeps coming; soft, white and misty. It reaches its tendrils around each tree. You can see it creeping, crawling like it is sneaking up on someone. As the sun sets, […]
Rose’s Tree
“Cora! Cora, lookit! Lookit me!” “Hey! Hey Cora! Look at me!” I looked up from my paperback. Somehow, Rose had hoisted herself up and into a little red wagon that stood by the fence. The little girl stood there, precarious but triumphant, her small arms stuck out to the sides for balance. I laughed inwardly […]
Maddy’s Last Beach Visit
For the rest of time itself, the spirit of Maddy will always live on here at Fort Funston Beach Our sleek black Highlander pulls up into the parking lot atop the steep cliff. I open the door and jump out, my feet landing on hard gravel with a soft crunch. The salty ocean air fills […]
Icarus Falling
I awake early in our small, candlelit prison a stone tower high above the sands of Crete. Father melts hot wax from his thick candle dripping it on my shoulders his gentle hands press something into place. Wings! Giant, feathery white wings unfolding from my bronze shoulders I stand in awe. Suddenly guards pound on […]
