A collection of hopepunk short stories that will lift your heart and your spirits.

This is a selection of entries to a writing challenge set by the publishers, all by writers aged 13-18. The task was to imagine life thirty years after the global COVID pandemic, and to send a message of hope back to 2020.

The diversity of the authors—eleven of whom speak a language other than English at home—is matched by their creativity.

From the action-packed fiction of magical Vinnie in Boston, from a writer in Saudi Arabia to the moving true story of a Chinese academic caught up in the Cultural Revolution, from his grand-daughter in Hong Kong, the stories reflect a generation who have been globally connected since birth, and have witnessed the suffering that divisiveness and hate cause.

The stories call for compassion, understanding and love for our fellow humans. Weep, laugh and feel uplifted by the hopeful visions of tomorrow's leaders.