family bonds

Story·Jessica Blanton, age 12 — A girl finds her late mother's locket in her backpack, triggering memories of her fourth birthday party and the day her mother died in a car accident.

Story·Holly Wist, age 13 — While searching for a book, a girl finds her sister's forgotten box of seashells, triggering a memory of an Easter trip where she lost a found conch shell but gained...

Story·Natalie Wittenbrook, age 11 — A twelve-year-old girl whose father hunts wolves for pelts rescues an orphaned wolf pup and, with help from the Animal Society, eventually convinces her father to stop commercial hunting.

Story·Emma Loizeaux, age 11 — A girl recalls waking at 4:30 AM to climb Panther Mountain with her mother and grandparents, eating hard-boiled eggs while watching the sunrise from the summit.

Story·Philip Grayeski, age 11 — A boy bonds with his grandfather through fishing trips and flying lessons in the Red Comet plane, then inherits the aircraft after his grandfather's death from cancer.

Story·Monica Del Toral, age 12 — During the Pearl Harbor attack, a young Japanese-American woman searches desperately for her brother among the wreckage while confronting sudden hostility from her neighbors.

Story·Kyle Eichner, age 13 — A young wife in 1896 South Carolina cares for her husband dying of consumption, their memories of courtship interweaving with his final days and the birth of their daughter.

Story·Devin McKissic, age 11 — During the Russian Revolution, a young aristocrat works in a hospital while worrying about her brother at war and witnessing her family's changing views on the Tsar.

Poetry·Katie Ferman, age 11 — A child recalls traveling interstate routes with her father, listening to Willie Nelson, wishing she could relive that hazy memory a thousand times.

Story·Sophia Stid, age 10 — A girl wakes at a family cabin called the Cedars, joins morning rituals including the 'Oh Joe' bell, and prepares for a hike with grandparents and cousins.