Stories – Stone Soup

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Where young artists paint the world with words

The international magazine of stories, poems, and art by young writers and artists. Published continuously since 1973.

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Alex and the Magical Harp

by Amrita Iyer Age 9

Published March 11, 2024

A long time ago, a poor boy named Alex lived in a village in Madagascar. His days were filled with...
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A Forever Type of Thing

by Emily Beltramo Age 12

Published June 6, 2023

I lean back against the black stone pillar behind me, inhaling the smell of hot street food. My stomach growls...
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Strings and a Purple Pick

by Riley Killen Age 13

Published March 4, 2023

When I wake up on the morning of the performance, I’m fine. For about three seconds. Then I remember what...
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Now Is the Time

by Lindsay Gale Age 9

Published September 22, 2022

My hands smoothed out the rose-colored dress I was wearing. The car hummed underneath me. We passed skyscrapers and other...
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Joyous Ensemble

By Sabrina Guo

Published March 3, 2019

In Shenzhen, China, the night before my first performance on tour with the Joyous String Ensemble, one of...
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Middlenames

By Thomas Faulhaber, Illustrated by Avery Multer<br/><br/><strong>Winner of the 2018 Science Fiction Contest</strong>

Published August 14, 2018

In his book Meaning, Galer wrote, “God created the human race as an experiment; He wanted to see if life...
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Rock-Star Nightmare

By Brian Qi, Illustrated by Thomas Buchanan

Published April 19, 2017

Thump, thump, thump. My heart beat like an animal, slapping its tail on the ground. Wiggly worms crawled in my...
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Beethoven’s Bargain

By Simon Reis, Illustrated by William Drewes

Published February 13, 2017

He was a strange boy. Some people would say that he was a loner. He usually went his own way...
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Year of Pain and Year of Glory

By Alissa Escarce, Illustrated by Hannah LeVasseur

Published January 11, 2017

“Alissa Escarce . . . Alissa Escarce," I muttered to myself, my finger moving slowly down the long list of...
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A Stroke of the Bow

By Megan Gannett, Illustrated by Leigh Marie Marshall

Published December 12, 2016

It had been almost a year since that fateful day last June when Lucy Livingstone's baby boy had died at...
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Alex and the Magical Harp

Story Age 9 Published March 11, 2024 by Amrita Iyer

A long time ago, a poor boy named Alex lived in a village in Madagascar. His days were filled with boredom, as there was no music where he lived. His life was limited within the boundaries of the vill...
Read More →

A Forever Type of Thing

Story Age 12 Published June 6, 2023 by Emily Beltramo

I lean back against the black stone pillar behind me, inhaling the smell of hot street food. My stomach growls loudly. A smoker then saunters past, leaving the suffocating smell of a cigarette behind,...
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Strings and a Purple Pick

Story Age 13 Published March 4, 2023 by Riley Killen

When I wake up on the morning of the performance, I’m fine. For about three seconds. Then I remember what day it is, and my stomach plunges up and down at the same time, going weightless.
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Now Is the Time

Story Age 9 Published September 22, 2022 by Lindsay Gale

My hands smoothed out the rose-colored dress I was wearing. The car hummed underneath me. We passed skyscrapers and other cars. I unfolded the music sheet, which was wrinkled and slightly ripped from ...
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Joyous Ensemble

Story Published March 3, 2019 By Sabrina Guo

In Shenzhen, China, the night before my first performance on tour with the Joyous String Ensemble, one of the youngest string ensembles in the world, I dreamt of a plum.
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Middlenames

Story Published August 14, 2018 By Thomas Faulhaber, Illustrated by Avery Multer<br/><br/><strong>Winner of the 2018 Science Fiction Contest</strong>

In his book Meaning, Galer wrote, “God created the human race as an experiment; He wanted to see if life was capable of creating for Him. Ultimately, He wanted us to produce beauty.
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Rock-Star Nightmare

Story Published April 19, 2017 By Brian Qi, Illustrated by Thomas Buchanan

Thump, thump, thump. My heart beat like an animal, slapping its tail on the ground. Wiggly worms crawled in my stomach. My mom called it “butterflies in your stomach.
Read More →

Beethoven’s Bargain

Story Published February 13, 2017 By Simon Reis, Illustrated by William Drewes

He was a strange boy. Some people would say that he was a loner. He usually went his own way and stayed away from others. Nobody knew why. A quiet, sad boy, he hardly ever said much and so he had trou...
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Year of Pain and Year of Glory

Story Published January 11, 2017 By Alissa Escarce, Illustrated by Hannah LeVasseur

“Alissa Escarce . . . Alissa Escarce," I muttered to myself, my finger moving slowly down the long list of names taped to the scratched wall. "Eugenie Cha . . . Jennifer Li . . .
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A Stroke of the Bow

Story Published December 12, 2016 By Megan Gannett, Illustrated by Leigh Marie Marshall

It had been almost a year since that fateful day last June when Lucy Livingstone's baby boy had died at the age of ten days. Catriona Livingstone, her twelve-year-old daughter, was accompanying Mr.
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