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Story·Lia Regal, age 12 — A Brooklyn girl finds refuge in basketball as her parents' marriage dissolves, then moves to a coastal farmhouse after the divorce, starting fresh with a new team.

Story·Braden M. McDonald, age 10 — A boy discovers a hidden world beneath his grandparents' farm where woodpecker-rabbit hybrids attack him with hot embers and ice until his grandfather rescues him.

Story·Emily E. Hogstad, age 12 — During a Nazi raid in occupied Denmark, a Danish girl hides her Jewish friend Leah in a closet, saved when a German soldier secretly pockets Leah's dropped Star of David...

Story·Danny Musher, age 13 — A young enslaved man flees through dark woods pursued by slave-catchers, finds what seems to be a safe house on the Underground Railroad, but is captured when the hiding place...

Story·Andrea Albertini, age 13 — A working-class girl secretly drives four hours to audition at a prestigious music school with her grandmother's cello, hoping to win a scholarship her family can't afford.

Story·Alexandra Pistey, age 13 — A Nevada girl becomes obsessed with capturing a wild palomino mustang, but when her father catches the mare for her birthday, she realizes the horse's spirit belongs to the mountains.

Story·Rebecca Schneider, age 12 — A homesick boy dreads going to sleep-away camp but discovers acceptance and friendship through a baseball game where his teammates encourage rather than mock him.

Poetry·Marley Powell, age 12 — A girl watches her cat grooming and wonders what cats understand about human conflicts, terrorism, and whether they might govern the world better than humans do.

Poetry·John Roberts, age 13 — A family celebrates every small victory by dancing the tango together, with even the dogs joining in, creating a ritual of shared joy.

Poetry·Tae Kathleen Keller, age 8 — A young pianist arrives for her lesson in a room filled with vanilla candles and Sesame Street stickers, then leaves with an assignment to compose a New Year's song.