ACARA Foundation-Year 2
— A cat's protective fury over its belly transforms into a meditation on violence that no one—not Earth, not people, not even the cat—truly wants.
— A playful meditation on hair elastics transforms a mundane object into something magical, capturing the physical sensation of summer heat and the relief of pulling hair back.
— A child's poem transforms an empty mansion into a haunted space through accumulating details of abandonment and decay.
— A space beast who devours endlessly doesn't belong in sky or sea, caught between realms with a roar that breaks doors and disturbs all peace.
— A portrait of a beloved teacher with hairy beard, runny nose, bitter jokes, and hard math who wins students over with cupcakes and stories.
— A golden elephant comes alive when no one is watching, capable of human actions like tying shoes and diving in pools, existing between performance and secret life.
— A surreal encounter at a juggle place leads to accusations of theft and a police litany of the narrator's strange misdeeds throughout the week.
— A fierce warning about tigers mixes danger with unexpected tenderness, calling them siblings to baby pebbles and the award of everything.
— A young poet's urgent plea for environmental action warns that without animals, 'the world is a joke' and challenges readers to reconsider who is truly foolish.
— A young poet confronts fear as a physical presence, describing its effects on body and mind before declaring victory through direct combat.