Small interactions cast big shadows in each of the stories in this middle grade collection about the surprising, often funny, moments that shape who we are and how we understand others from E.L. Konigsburg, the Newbery Medal–winning author of From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler.

A retired college president is determined to best a young beachcomber.
A boy gets accused of shoplifting by a store manager.
A tour guide strikes a bargain with an enterprising orphan.
A boy recovering from a broken arm befriends an elderly woman in an old folks’ home.
A widow and her son seize an opportunity presented by a pair of antiques dealers.

In each of these extraordinary short stories from the perceptive pen of E.L. Konigsburg, a chance meeting illuminates what things have been and what they can become—and how an unexpected encounter can change a life forever.