sensory richness
— A girl who was found on a beach as a baby discovers through a magical conch shell that she was rescued by whales after her parents' ship capsized.
— A girl recalls summers at her family's Maine house, exploring tide pools and climbing Cannon Rock, where she collected sea glass and dreamed of becoming a marine biologist.
— A sixth-grade violinist, the youngest finalist in a school competition, plays brilliantly but doesn't place, learning to transform disappointment into determination for next year.
— Ed plays basketball with his friend Dave before a school bingo night where he comes within one number of winning an air-hockey table, losing to an elderly woman.
— A midnight journey from bed to kitchen for milk captures the disorienting sensory details of being awake at 3:30 A.M.
— After her sister's fatal riding accident, Dylan struggles with her mother's overprotectiveness until her own fall forces her to choose between her passion for horses and her mother's peace of...
— A prose poem traces summer wind through sensory moments — sweet taste, ruffled hair, fireflies — until winter arrives and only memory remains.
— A girl struggles with insomnia on a school night, trying various methods to fall asleep until the sounds of nature finally calm her racing mind.
— A river otter named Roscoe flees from hunters and is saved when an old beaver sacrifices his life to protect him, changing Roscoe forever.
— During an autumn storm, forest creatures—a squirrel, owl, fox, mole, and others—struggle for shelter and food, their lives intersecting in a complex web of survival.