vivid characters
— A girl on the social outskirts is chosen as the healer's apprentice, severing ties with family and friends to begin her new life in the forest.
— A girl roller-skating to a reservoir meets Ally, who teaches her to catch frogs and watch for foxes while sharing a philosophy of doing whatever feels right.
— A white girl in art class gradually befriends Tammy, a Black student who faces racist bullying, culminating when she witnesses an attack and offers help.
— A girl misses her best friend who moved to England three years ago, fights with her parents about visiting, then learns patience when her father suggests a family trip.
— On planet Matia 3, where girls are expected to raise families, Retsina attempts her fourth and final chance to become a Space Cadet, competing against boys in a grueling test.
— Two bored suburban kids venture into the swamp seeking a legendary hermit, encounter an alligator, and are saved by the very man they sought.
— A foster brother recalls two years with Jack, an orphan boy who arrived scared and angry but slowly learned to play, trust, and eventually found adoptive parents.
— A mother cheetah hunts to feed her cubs, then saves them from a grass fire sparked by lightning, losing one cub before finding her again.
— A seven-year-old searching for snakes in his backyard encounters a timber rattlesnake that bites him when he moves too suddenly, leading to hospitalization.
— A third-grader forced to sit with sixth-graders on the bus faces bullying until an older girl in a matching outfit stands up for her, turning fear into friendship.