Aniana Del Mar belongs in the water like a dolphin belongs to the sea. But she and Papi keep her swim practices and meets hidden from Mami, who has never recovered from losing someone she loves to the water years ago. Until the Ani's stiffness and swollen joints mean she can no longer get out of bed, and Ani is forced to reveal just how important swimming is to her. Mami forbids her from returning to the water, but Ani and her doctor believe that...

Rory is an antihero for the ages. Like Shakespeare’s Richard III, she confides in her audience, telling us exactly the lengths she’ll go to to secure the leading role in Bosworth Academy’s senior musical, confessing without shame that she is charming and conniving and brutally ambitious, that we will watch and root for her even as she manipulates and endangers those around her. And we do. Perhaps it’s because we don’t want to believe that...

Every day at the hospital is a new adventure for Cricket, and today is no exception. She and handler Tunde are on the neurology floor visiting Braden, a nine-year-old boy with epilepsy. Braden's seizures have become more frequent, and he and his dad are looking for answers. Can Cricket help Braden cope with a blood draw and other important tests and procedures in the hospital? Join Cricket and Child Life Specialist Tunde to find out more about Braden...

Sixteen-year-old Iris Moody has a problem controlling her temper--but then, she has a lot to be angry about. Dead mother. Workaholic father. Dumped by her boyfriend. Failing English. When a note in Iris's journal is mistaken as a threat against her English teacher, she finds herself in trouble not only with school authorities but with the law. In addition to summer school, dog-phobic Iris is sentenced to an entire summer of community service, rehabilitating...

It's Dash's first day at the hospital, and her confidence is wavering. She wonders whether she has what it takes to be a good facility dog. Then Dash and handler Navya meet Francisco, a ten-year-old diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, and Dash's training kicks in. Can Dash help Francisco cope with pokes, shots, and other parts of his diabetes treatment? Join Dash and Child Life Specialist Navya to find out more about Francisco as he takes on diabetes!...

Twelve-year-old Al Schneider is used to holding things in. She lives right across the hall from her best friend, Leo, and even he doesn't know anything about her crushes on girls or her sneaking suspicion that she poops more than anyone else on the planet. So when Al is diagnosed with Crohn's disease, she figures it's just one more thing to keep to herself. After all, who want to talk about what you do in the bathroom? The problem is, the more Al...

Deena’s never given a name to the familiar knot in her stomach that appears when her parents argue about money, when it’s time to go to school, or when she struggles to find the right words. She manages to make it through each day with the help of her friends and the art she loves to make. While her parents’ money troubles cause more and more stress, Deena wonders if she can use her artistic talents to ease their burden. She creates a logo and...

All Elle Campbell wants to do is meet their personal hero, nonbinary icon Nuri Grena. Well, okay, they'd like a bit more than that--they'd like to learn how to do cat eye makeup, for queen bee Casey to stop critiquing her outfits, and for the finale of Elle's favorite show to have been less terrible. But meeting Nuri means the most of all. When Elle learns that Nuri is coming to town for a book signing on Saturday, Elle is thrilled. They've never...

Lola is disappointed after a bout of stage fright earns her a non-speaking part in her class play, but on opening night, the curtain rises and she finds herself smack in the middle of an exasperating turn of events.

Middle school is a dungeon. At least, that's how Jess sees it. Luckily, she and her best friend, Olivia, know how to escape into the sprawling worlds of their own imaginations. The two friends have always loved making up stories, first with little-kid games of make-believe, and more recently with the fantasy role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons. When they play, Olivia runs the game as Dungeon Master, and Jess is the solo party member, playing a take-no-prisoners...