family bonds
— A boy returns to his late grandfather's wilderness farm for the first time since his death, finding solace when sunlight breaks through storm clouds onto a magnolia tree.
— A boy remembers his grandmother through the landscape she loved — hot air balloons, hilltop trees, vineyards — and the moment of scattering her ashes.
— Three cousins rowing to a Maine lighthouse are caught in a sudden storm, their boat capsizes, and they barely make it to shore alive.
— A boy on his first duck hunt with his father struggles between wanting to please his dad and his inability to kill the mallard in his sights.
— A foster child traveling to a new placement bonds with her driver when their car breaks down, discovering he and his adoptive parents will be her new family.
— A girl loses her childhood best friend when their families take opposite sides during the American Revolution's Stamp Act crisis, their final parting at a harbor as he sails away.
— A girl resents moving to a run-down house with her divorced mother until she discovers her mom crying over photos of her father, realizing they share the same grief.
— After her sister's fatal riding accident, Dylan struggles with her mother's overprotectiveness until her own fall forces her to choose between her passion for horses and her mother's peace of...
— In this Dogon retelling of Cinderella, orphaned Ligiri endures her cruel sister's abuse until her grandfather's spirit and magical beads help her win the Hogon's son's heart.
— A girl recalls her baseball-playing brother who returns from WWII as a ghost of himself, until their shared baseball finally breaks his silence.