authentic voice
— A girl struggles with her family's move to Hawaii and her father's engagement, finding peace only when she discovers her mother's spirit remains with her.
— A girl discovers her mother's missing camellias are being taken by a Mexican neighbor who weaves flower crowns, leading to friendship and tragedy when the neighbor's sister drowns.
— A boat journey brings memories of a grandfather as dolphins appear, blending present observation with past experiences on the water.
— A boy joins his marine biologist father on a rescue mission to free a bottlenose dolphin trapped in fishing nets fourteen miles off the California coast.
— A girl visits her grandmother with Alzheimer's at a retirement home, grapples with a missing wedding ring, and finds peace when her grandmother hears angels singing.
— A volunteer at a goat farm becomes attached to a sickly newborn goat she names Barney, nurses him to health, then must find him a loving home when he's sold.
— A girl torn between joining the spring musical with friends or trying track discovers new friendship when she chooses the unfamiliar path.
— A child recalls dancing in autumn leaves before moving south, where a photograph preserves what geography has taken away.
— After his parents' divorce, Jasper struggles to adjust to life with his mother until he finds solace at a dock by the sea and learns a hard truth from his...
— A boy secretly befriends a field mouse his family considers a pest, then faces a moral crisis when his grandmother orders him to shoot it with his bow and arrow.