adventure

Story·Anna Hagen, age 11 — 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.

Story·Alex Chan-Kai, age 11 — A boy ignores earthquake warnings to go skateboarding with his friend, then gets trapped when a major quake hits the skate park and the building collapses.

Story·Rebekah Carbajal, age 11 — Three cousins rowing to a Maine lighthouse are caught in a sudden storm, their boat capsizes, and they barely make it to shore alive.

Story·Max Strebel, age 11 — A boy reluctantly leaves his TV show to help with chores, befriends a squirrel, attempts to rescue it from a hawk, and discovers a new connection to nature.

Poetry·Connor Park, age 12 — A young reader searches library shelves until discovering a forgotten red book with gold lettering that promises adventure despite its brevity.

Story·Allie Aguila, age 11 — A girl with amnesia wakes on a beach, joins a group of free children, and learns to fly by believing in herself—until she wakes from the dream.

Story·Elizabeth Mainardi, age 13 — A wizard named Zordex faces his enemy Yoleighwan in a standoff on a barren plain, then receives an unexpected visit from Queen Qyera seeking an alliance against dark forces.

Story·Ann Pedtke, age 13 — During a blizzard in 1861, fourteen-year-old Abby takes over for an injured Pony Express rider to deliver President Lincoln's inaugural speech two miles through the storm.

Story·Erica Boyce, age 13 — A girl raised by lions in Africa encounters humans who might be her birth parents and must choose between two families.

Story·Marie Chapman, age 12 — Two seventh-graders investigate dead fish at a marsh, uncovering a plot to destroy the wetland for a mall, and catch the criminals in a nighttime stakeout.