Fiction Survival Stories

A lonely boy in a prairie town befriends a local outsider in 1947 and then witnesses a shocking murder. Based on a true story. Canwood, Saskatchewan, 1947. Leonard Flint, a lonely boy in a small farming town befriends the local outsider, a man known as Rabbit Foot Bill. Bill doesn’t talk much...

Michael Chabon, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay, has joined forces with the editors of McSweeney's Quarterly Concern to create a collection of action-packed short stories by some of today's most talented names in literature.

Each of the three seeds in this story - a cherry seed in the Middle East, an acacia seed in Australia, a lotus seed in Asia - survives a difficult journey through flood, fire, or drought, then sprouts (in the case of the lotus seed, a hundred years later) and flourishes. To author Stephie Morton, nature's powerful forces are a metaphor for the hardships faced by displaced children. Kids, like seeds, thrive when given a chance.

Sisters Lu and Min have always known their places as the princesses of the Empire of the First Flame: assertive Lu will be named her father's heir and become the dynasty's first female ruler while timid Min will lead a quiet life in Lu's shadow. Until their father names their male cousin Set his heir instead, sending ripples through the realm and throwing both girls' lives into utter chaos. Determined to reclaim her birthright, Lu has no choice but to go on the run, leaving Min to face the volatile court alone.

Cade is settling into a new boarding school, contemplating his future, when he finds himself transported to another realm. He soon discovers their new world is populated with lost remnants from the past: prehistoric creatures, ancient relics, and, stranger still - people. Overwhelmed by his new surroundings, Cade has little time to adjust, for soon he and his fellow classmates are forced to become contenders in a brutal game, controlled by mysterious overlords.

Jeff and his best friend Keith are ice-fishing in the middle of Big Lake. It’s been hours without a bite, but they’re still having a blast - until the storm of the decade closes in. Soon, the entire landscape is buried in three feet of snow and the snowfall shows no sign of stopping.

Setting out to meet the parents becomes an epic adventure in Rick and Tina's mind. Because of timing, they decide to road trip across the USA. Tina chronicles their experiences with a camera and Facebook Live videos while interviewing Rick.

Cryptic and threatening messages keep turning up, bad luck follows the couple on their trek across the country. To make matters worse, Rick fears a cyber breach, and somebody from both of their pasts is released from prison.

Watching over them, one dog, who's used to protecting the humans he owns. Opus. He is happily along for the ride to make sure they don't do anything they would regret, but when the fur starts to fly, he comes out of retirement.

Nowhere to run, one place left to hide. You're running from bullets through the streets of your own town. Your life's on the line and no-one's there to help. What's happened? When did safety turn to fear, peace turn to war, happiness turn to panic? When did your normal day become a nightmare? Ellie and her friends struggle with the biggest questions life can offer.

Hannah Steele loves living on Pelling, a tiny island near Seattle. She's always felt totally safe there. So when she's asked to babysit after school one day, it's no big deal. Zoe and Oscar are her next-door neighbors, and Hannah just took a babysitting class, which she's pretty sure makes her an expert. She isn't even worried that she left her inhaler at home. Then the shaking begins. The terrifying earthquake only lasts four minutes, but it changes everything.

Christopher has never rafted on a river like Australia's Franklin River. Will he be brave enough to tackle the whitewater?

Kirk and his Granddad are out hiking in the mountains when Granddad injures his ankle. Since he can’t hike anymore, it’s up to Kirk to face the mountain and its unpredictable weather by himself to get back to the smokechasers’ tower and call for help.

"Bang! A side door bursts open. Soldiers pour into the room. They're shouting and waving rifles. I shield my head with my arms. It was a lie! I think, my mind racing. Girls and boys alike are screaming. The soldiers prod and herd some of us together and push the rest apart as if we're cows or goats.Their leader, though, is a middle-aged man. He's moving slowly, intently, not dashing around like the others. 'Take the boys only, Win Min,' I overhear him telling a tall, gangly soldier...."

Shy Megan Kelly cannot forget the day a gypsy read her palm announcing to all that she would bring trouble to those around her. Afterward, trouble does follow her, until she takes the necessary steps to free herself from the burdens of fear, loneliness, and superstition.

Even under the most normal circumstances, high school can be a painful and confusing time. Unfortunately, Lilianna’s circumstances are anything but normal. Only a few people know what caused her sudden change from model student to the withdrawn pessimist she has become, but her situation isn’t about to get any better. When people begin coming down with a quick-spreading illness that doctors are unable to treat, Lil’s worst fears are realized.

It's the most important rule of scuba diving: If you don't feel right, don't go down. So after her father falls ill, 12-year-old Julie Sims must take over and lead two of his clients on a dive miles off the coast of Alabama while her father stays behind in the boat. When the clients, a reckless boy Julie's age and his equally foolhardy father, disregard Julie's instructions during the dive, she quickly realizes she's in over her head. And once she surfaces, things only get worse: One of the clients is in serious condition, and their dive boat has vanished.

Xander Liu survived the alien invasion - just barely. For more than a year, he has outsmarted, hidden from, and otherwise avoided the ruthless intruders, the Nahx, dodging the deadly darts that have claimed so many. When the murder of his friend leaves him in the protective company of August, a rebellious Nahx soldier, Xander is finally able to make his way back to human controlled territory and relative safety. But safety among the humans is not what it seems.

It's not as great as you'd think, living in a tourist town that's known as "the most magical place in America". Same boring high school, just twice as many monsters under the bridges and rival Families killing each other for power. I try to keep out of it. I've got my mom's bloodiron sword and my slightly illegal home in the basement of the municipal library. And a couple of Talents I try to keep quiet, including very light fingers and a way with a lock pick.

At first, when a massive ice storm traps 14-year-old Hannah and her family in a remote cabin, it feels like a game to practice the survival skills she's been learning. That all changes when an accident leaves her mother desperately low on insulin. With no power and no way to contact the outside world, Hannah steals away with the four family dogs tied to an old dogsled. All she has to do is make it to the nearest cabin and find a working phone to save the day. But a wrong turn and worsening weather leave her in grave danger and saddled with an unexpected passenger.

Discovering their newfound tradition and love for camping at the Grand Tetons, The Campground Kids anticipate their next adventure—exploring the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Karana, a Ghalas-at Indian, lives peacefully on the island with her tribe until the arrival of a Russian otter-hunting ship. In spite of the deal the Aleutian hunters make with her father, the Ghalas-at chief, in the end they prove treacherous, killing most of the tribe. Karana's younger brother, Ramo, is all that is left of her family. Fearful of the Aleuts' return, the remaining Indians decide to move to another island, and are offered safe passage by some friendly ships. But as Karana boards the ship to leave the island forever, she is unable to find Ramo.