freedom

Story·Nora Rothman, age 11 — In 1850, a sixteen-year-old girl who dreams of more than housework meets a stranger who takes her poetry to a printing press, changing her life forever.

Story·Megan Kirby, age 12 — A girl forms a bond with a wild black stallion named Draco, but realizes she must set him free when captivity breaks his spirit.

Poetry·Nicole Guenther, age 12 — A girl contrasts her fearless swing-jumping with her cautious friend, capturing the exhilaration of flight and the dizzy joy of letting go.

Story·Maya Koretzky, age 12 — A boy trapped by his father's grief after his brother's drowning at sea finds freedom when an Angolan sailor arrives, offering passage to Zanzibar and a chance to reclaim the...

Poetry·Nicole Guenther, age 12 — A young poet confronts mortality by imagining flight beyond Earth's gravity, transforming the fear of nothingness into an invitation to soar through unnamed universes.

Story·Elena Tennant, age 11 — A seventh-grader befriends a new Muslim student and successfully advocates to the school board for her right to wear a hijab after their teacher bans it.

Story·Natalia M. Thompson, age 13 — In Tehran, a teenage girl joins her mother's secret political group that meets under the guise of Friday tea gatherings while the men are at prayer.

Story·Annakai Hayakawa Geshlider, age 9 — A girl secretly cares for neglected horses in Toronto until one morning they leap the fence and she rides with them toward the sunrise.

Story·Brigit Pierce and Sam Hinton and Hannah Feren — In a dystopian dome where citizens' memories are erased through food, Drew discovers her grandmother has vanished and uses her voice-mimicking talent to expose the truth.

Story·Christina Suh, age 12 — A privileged Southern girl discovers her family's enslaved girl Susan attempting to escape and, after hearing Susan's story, helps her flee north to freedom.