Stone Soup Magazine
— A nervous boy attempts his first solo skydive over California's Redwood Forest, facing equipment failure when his main parachute cord breaks, saved by the automatic backup.
— A young birder enters a contest at Sunset Park, using patience and birdseed to attract thirty-seven birds while competitors rush around, winning the grand prize.
— An 11-year-old girl attends her first professional ballet performance for her grandmother's birthday and discovers her calling to become a ballerina.
— A girl in a hammock captures the sounds of summer — breeze, splashing, insects, lawnmower — then sprints toward an ice cream truck's tinkling music.
— An eleven-year-old meticulously plans to run away from her three younger brothers and endless family picnics, but when teenagers invade her hideout, she races home to find unexpected comfort.
— A young person addresses someone who left without explanation, cycling through questions, pleas, and the haunting memory of their whispered apology.
— Castle of Shadows, by Ellen Renner; Houghton Mifflin Books for Children: New York, 2012; $15.99 Charlie is the princess of Quale. Yes, she lives in a castle, with gardens and...
— A fox hunts through moonlit woods, chases a rabbit to an unfamiliar farmhouse, narrowly escapes a human's gunshot, and limps home injured but determined.
— A young writer observes the creek behind her house, cataloging its life—fish, flowers, frogs—and recognizes it as her private world of peace.
— My Mixed-Up Berry Blue Summer, by Jennifer Gennari; Houghton Mifflin Books for Children: New York, 2012; $15.99 My Mixed-Up Berry Blue Summer is a book about politics and pie. June...