animals

Story·Claire Wilhelm-Safian, age 11 — A poet escapes his chaotic household at night to write in the barn, where the sounds of sleeping animals inspire verses that flow from his heart.

Story·Erin Cadora, age 10 — A stray cat with a bell that prevents her from hunting gradually learns to trust a grieving woman who feeds her, eventually becoming a beloved family pet.

Poetry·Sophie Anne Ruehr, age 11 — A child navigates a Cape Cod beach as high tide transforms the landscape, jumping ice-covered islands while observing the retreating wildlife and encroaching sea.

Story·William Gwaltney, age 12 — A young man becomes a rodeo bullfighter on the anniversary of his best friend's death, facing the same bull that killed him a year earlier.

Poetry·Caley Scheppegrell, age 13 — A girl escapes her unwanted birthday party to the woods where she encounters a wolf, recognizing their shared solitude before exchanging wordless farewells.

Poetry·Ava Alexander, age 11 — Winter melts into spring as mountains show green haze, moles tunnel, and a robin pulls the first worm from softened ground.

Story·Bonnie Leigh Cruser, age 13 — A thirteen-year-old girl wakes before dawn to ride her pony bareback through woods and fields, finding renewal in their secret morning gallop.

Story·Annakai Hayakawa Geshlider, age 12 — A 12-year-old searches frantically for her free-roaming cat Comet, posts flyers around the neighborhood, and finally reunites with him after a neighbor rescues him from a rooftop light well.

Story·Hannah V. Read, age 9 — A girl diving into a pool transforms through daydreams into a bird, fish, and otter before a bump returns her to reality at the diving board.

Story·Hugh Cole, age 11 — A boy who can speak to animals flees with his wolf-dog when a monster called an Alarcon hunts him for his powers, ultimately escaping when a condor saves them from...