finding home

Poetry·Nora Cohen, age 11 — A moment on a winter porch watching snow fall from grey clouds onto beautiful mountains, then walking away from the peaceful scene.

Personal Narrative·Jack Moody, age 10 — A peacock appears on a suburban Virginia roof, struts like it owns the place, calls to another peacock in the yard, then flies away.

Story·Lucia Osborn-Stocker, age 12 — A lonely guard dragon, hardened by years of servitude, finds unexpected companionship when a starving fox pup steals food and curls up beside him for warmth.

Story·Annabelle Vaughan, age 9 — A girl who saved a cat finds herself followed by street cats everywhere, leading to chaos when she tries to help them make her mother happy so they won't have...

Poetry·Eva Worsick, age 9 — A child addresses a cedar tree, remembering climbing its branches, building a swing, sharing secrets, and hanging Christmas ornaments that catch the light.

Personal Narrative·Michelle Wang, age 12 — A Chinese immigrant child's first day of American school transforms from terror to tentative hope when a classmate extends a gentle hand of friendship.

Story·Chloe Leng, age 12 — In a post-COVID dystopia where rich and poor are segregated, a lonely delivery boy discovers an underground society of 'Peacebreakers' who refuse to wear masks or social distance.

Poetry·William Chui, age 13 — A boy discovers beauty in his seemingly routine summer day, noticing small details — a flickering light, his dog's warm belly, new plants in the backyard.

Story·Tristan Hui, age 14 — A girl falls through her apartment floor into another realm where she teams up with a refugee shelter volunteer to steal a car and journey to the mysterious island of...

Story·Nora Heiskell, age 12 — Katrina's life changes when she befriends Mr. McCumber, a lonely old man, and later finds herself in an orphanage where she forms a chosen family with other orphaned girls.