vivid characters

Story·Benet Dawn Stoen, age 11 — A girl moves to the South Pole with her scientist parents, befriends a local boy who runs away after a painful memory surfaces, then nearly dies of hypothermia while searching...

Story·Erin Riesen, age 12 — A spoiled girl hiding in a hayloft discovers old photos and dreams herself into her grandfather's wartime Dresden, returning with new understanding and respect.

Story·Adair Brooks, age 13 — A deaf girl named Shira, isolated from her musical family, discovers her artistic talent and creates a fundraising campaign for Haiti earthquake victims through her paintings.

Story·Ismena Jameau, age 10 — A spoiled girl working at her uncle's horse ranch to earn money for a laptop discovers an abandoned horse and unexpectedly bonds with him, changing her attitude.

Story·Isabel Won, age 11 — A brother and sister have a water gun fight on a hot day while their parents are out, ending when the sister gets too cold and the brother makes her...

Story·Allison Armstrong, age 13 — Eight-year-old Suzy discovers a calico kitten at the Humane Society and works doing chores to prove she's responsible enough to adopt it.

Story·Genevieve Anderle, age 13 — A family's annual Jersey Shore tradition of catching, killing, and cooking crabs becomes a multigenerational ritual of teasing, swimming, and feasting on homemade Italian gravy.

Story·Schuyler Mitchell, age 12 — A farm girl secretly nurses an injured wild foal back to health, then releases him to freedom when discovery threatens.

Story·Arjun Pillai Hausner, age 12 — A kind cow helps a rhino and a bird in the forest, and when a tiger threatens her, they return the favor by rescuing her together.

Story·Freya Trefonides, age 12 — A teenager watches her four-year-old cousin Rose repeatedly climb things she shouldn't, capturing a perfect photo of Rose in her special apple tree before realizing this moment might be forgotten.