ACARA Years 7-10

Story·Miranda Neubauer, age 13 — A German girl bullied for her old-fashioned name finds her first friend in an American newcomer, then must overcome her fear to save her from Neo-Nazi attackers.

Story·Zoe Paschkis, age 14 — A girl accidentally stains her grandmother's quilt while secretly writing at night, then reveals her hidden writing to her mother, who shares her own story of artistic regret.

Story·Max Strebel, age 12 — A girl befriends bear cubs, discovers her taxidermist father killed their mother, and years later must choose between saving him from a bear attack or protecting the animal.

Story·Marie Agnello, age 12 — A twelve-year-old discovers seventy-five letters from 1919-1923 between her great-grandmother and a French pen pal, Cécile, who died at age twenty.

Poetry·Alexa Bryn, age 11 — A granddaughter observes her grandfather's dementia, as Holocaust memories resurface while present moments fade, yet his gentle spirit and their bond remain intact.

Story·Lily Beaumont, age 12 — In 1665 Madrid, thirteen-year-old Maria defies her father's arranged marriage plans and elopes with Edward, an English ambassador's son, to pursue her dream of writing novels.

Story·Liz Reeves, age 12 — A high-achieving student preparing for a prestigious science program rediscovers her abandoned passion for dance when an application asks what she's passionate about.

Story·Tania Karas, age 12 — A girl watches her cousin Rebecca cling to hope that her divorced father will return, even after he attempts to kidnap her and robs a bank.

Story·Erica Boyce, age 13 — A girl raised by lions in Africa encounters humans who might be her birth parents and must choose between two families.

Story·Hilary Miller, age 13 — A Thai girl defies her overprotective mother to save their home by selling the family's beloved mango tree to pay off the mortgage.