Short For Teens

A motley crew, banished from a Western town, find strength, and weakness, in each other.

Guy de Maupassant is considered one of the fathers of the modern short story. His narratives are characterized by an economy of style and the efficient way in which the various threads are neatly resolved. In "The False Jewels", a man who dotes on his wife is crushed by her unexpected death and then astounded by a revelation about her costume jewelry.

The Dome protects us. It is life for all who live under the ice barrier, but it is on the brink of failure. The Elders saw this coming; they have a plan. There's just one problem: I can't breathe underwater like everyone else. I'm the last air-breathing human in the Dome. As the Aquatics migrate to their new home, I'll need to find a way to survive.

Seventeen-year-old Lydia Knight is about to start her senior year at Transylvanica High, one of several integrated pilot schools across the country where human and vampire students peacefully coexist. She is a bit leery about her cousin, Roland DuPree, 18, coming to live with her and her parents in Harbor Heights, Michigan, with his dark clothing and odd behavior. But since he is family, she has to tolerate him and even accept the fact that her best friend, Mandi, is attracted to her cousin.

Meet Syrenka, a little mermaid who must convince her father the Sea King, not to start a war against the humans. Except she had become the very thing he despised...she is secretly living on land as a human. A fairy tale fantasy adventure prequel! This short story takes place after the events in Hans Christian Andersen’s Little Mermaid and before Roy Mauritsen’s epic Shards of the Glass Slipper series.

All good things must come to an end. After spending all of their free time every summer practicing and playing baseball, Malachi, Elizajane, Noah, and Elias must grow up. Playing on the magic diamond against the best players in baseball history would remain one of their greatest experiences, but the field is reserved for the young at heart only, and the big world is good at making people into adults. One Easter, when the four kids are much older and Malachi has kids of his own, they begin talking about the magic diamond they used to play on as kids.

A group of four teenagers get together every week to watch movies. They love nothing more than a good movie or a good adventure. Being able to combine the two, now that's something they get excited about. Listen to how the gang get into scrapes and adventures, turning detective to uncover all manor of mysteries, legends, and myths, not to say mysteries within their own imaginations. This short story takes you into their world as their adventures begin.

Both funny and moving, this story of a most unusual Bar Mitzvah beautifully captures the spirit of one of the most important days in a young man's life. Featuring a special guest appearance by author James Howe himself as the rabbi!

Is Love is a novelette series set in a world where natural love is forbidden. Girls are to be matched by the council in order to build a desirable society. Those who violate the Caiden Act are sentenced to live in the outer compounds, where the only thing that can save them is love. This is the first novelette in a series of three.

A noodle shop girl's hijinks with her sassy dragon friend.

This scorching story tells of a father and son trying to reach out to each other over years of loss and absence. An almost unbearably moving recording.

Listeners of Gwillimbury Tales are in for a treat. The cast of characters is charmingly eclectic. There is J.J., the Junior Reporter, who writes his news stories in “secret code”. Serge, the Apprentice Electrician, whose unprofessional antics cause the town’s lights to go out, forcing the neighborhood kids to find their unconnected-selves, and even to play outdoors. Milford, the dyslexic Mailman, whose delivery skills lead to....well, you can imagine. And Porter, an absent-minded Pipefitter, who inadvertently creates a man-made lake for all to enjoy.

It's the summer after graduation, and Bayleigh just asked Becca to be her maid of honor. Determined to give her best friend the greatest wedding ever, Becca has a lot on her plate. When she thinks she's finally got everything under control, a certain member of the groom's bridal party can't keep his eyes off her. Becca's not sure how to handle all the attention but she is sure of one thing: This will be a summer to remember.

Three stories. Three heroines. Three choices. ”The Maze”: Cadet Eppie Langtry navigates the cold and endless maze as part of the Academy's final training exercise. Her exploration leads her to a fellow cadet, and their combined curiosity triggers something no one expects - least of all the cadre running the maze.

Ten fun stories that engage teenagers and their minds. A variety of stories to choose from that are captivating and fun. Ten fun stories that engage teenagers and their minds. A variety of stories to choose from that are captivating and fun. Learn a story, tell a story!

Arriving in the rural Catskill Mountains (where legend has it there resides a spectral headless horseman who hunts the night on a black steed), the eccentric Ichabod Crane vies for the love of the beautiful Katrina Van Tassel. The bully, Brom Bones, also has his eyes on Katrina and devises a wicked plan to rid himself of his hated rival.

Richie Preston is 27 years old and still lives in his parents' house, still works at a dead end job, lost his great love, still hasn't really begun his life. One day the fates smile on him and give him the opportunity to start over, to go back to being 17 and about to start his senior year of high school, only this time with all the memories of what he did wrong the first time. All he has to do is not interfere with anyone else's life. It sounds like a great deal, but living up to his end of the bargain turns out to be harder than Richie ever imagined.

You can imagine my surprise when I was playing kickball on the playground and discovered I could fly! Most of you might think that's pretty cool and all...but it's not all it's cracked up to be. My name is JW, and this is my story: the story of a boy who discovers he has super human powers, and the heart to match!

This is a selection from Kipling's The Second Jungle Book.

There’s nothing better than taking your timid little cousin Thad to one of those sweet haunted houses the 4-H Club decorates for Halloween. Except, of course, if the house turns out to actually be haunted. A short story from Guys Read: Thriller, edited by Jon Scieszka.