emotional depth

Story·Charlie Kubica, age 11 — A Polish boy moves to Miami with his father and grandmother, facing language barriers and bullying before finding community with other immigrant students in ESL class.

Story·Marlena Rohde, age 12 — Two sisters discover magical golden seaweed that cures illness, but when a greedy friend threatens them for it, they escape to join an underwater community of glowing creatures.

Poetry·Kieran O'Donnell, age 11 — A philosophical meditation on how cold is merely the absence of heat, exploring the nature of opposites and what truly exists versus what we perceive.

Story·Elisabeth Baer, age 10 — A magical clock that regulates emotions is thrown away by its bitter owner, journeys through the ocean depths, meets the empress of the sea, and finds a new home with...

Poetry·Rebecca Beaver, age 13 — A speaker confronts the loss of their heart to the moon, becoming a whisper of their former self in this surreal exploration of identity and emptiness.

Poetry·Sara Chebili, age 13 — A grandson builds a chair beside an avocado tree he planted, hoping to help his grandmother with memory loss remember their shared moments by the shore.

Story·Lucy Zanker, age 11 — A girl and her robotic brother accidentally launch themselves into space on their father's NASA rocket, forcing her to disassemble him to return home safely.

Poetry·Ana Carpenter, age 10 — A girl imagines being queen of the world, floating above in moonlight and clouds, but discovers the weight of such power and chooses ordinary life instead.

Story·Rhianna Searle, age 12 — After Trump's 2016 election, two sixth-grade best friends—one Democrat, one Republican—struggle when politics threatens their friendship, until a handmade bracelet offers reconciliation.

Story·Sonja ten Grotenhuis, age 10 — A girl who can't ride a bike faces humiliation at bike camp until she meets Rosie, another struggling rider who offers genuine friendship.