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In this powerful collection of short stories, children around the world turn eleven and take a step into their futures. Each one is changed in ways both big and small.
Annoyed at having to walk his sister’s dog on his birthday, Connor heads into an undeveloped subdivision, where he comes across chilling evidence of a stranger’s unhappiness. A girl sneaks away from her class camping trip to a local conservation area and experiences the terror and joy of fending for herself for the first time. Dom’s brother gives him a special crystal to boost his confidence, and the gift conjures up a child laborer from the impoverished area of Madagascar where the stones were mined. Mysterious voices at the local county fair prompt Aislynn to think twice after her older sister dumps her for her high-school buddies. While volunteering at his local soup kitchen, Len discovers that there are bigger shames than having the class bully seeing you in a hairnet. And on an historic bridge in Budapest, Lazlo’s dream of the perfect father-son birthday outing becomes a nightmare when his father introduces him to his Neo-Nazi friends.
A companion to the critically acclaimed Sit.
Key Text Features
short stories
table of contents
dialogue
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Ellis explores the first steps toward maturity via children's 11th birthdays in this empathic collection of 10 global stories, a companion to Sit. The American protagonist of "Alone" achieves autonomy by sneaking away from a class camping trip to face her personal fears and revels in the realization that "no one knows where I am" by spending two nights on her own in a nature preserve. But many other protagonists have little control over their circumstances, such as Oma in "Rubber," whose family nearly drowns trying to reach Europe with other refugees on rubber rafts, and Hungarian Lazlo in "Shoes," whose father attempts to induct him into a neo-Nazi organization. Regardless of settings and conditions, each child uncovers inner strength, or gains a new understanding of their world, on that pivotal day. Ellis succinctly creates 10 sympathetic characters, highlighting the difficult situations and emotional challenges faced by a range of children around the world. Read individually, each story is affecting; as a whole, the collection is a potent representation of the onset of mature thought and emotional complexity. Ages 9–12.
