Of Time and Turtles

June 26, 2023
In this moving outing, National Book Award finalist Montgomery (The Soul of an Octopus) reports on the efforts of the Turtle Rescue League, a Southbridge, Mass., wildlife group that provides a permanent home for disabled turtles as well as rehabilitative care for those “recovering from illness or injury” or “who hatched out late or too small.” Montgomery offers a fly-on-the-wall perspective of the group’s daily operations, accompanying staff to provide water to nests at risk of drying out during a heat wave and return beached sea turtles to the ocean after a storm. Along the way, she profiles staffers, including “flashy extrovert” Alexxia Bell and “soft-spoken introvert” Natasha Nowick, who created the organization after bonding over their love of turtles, but the reptiles are the real stars, including Pizza Man, the red-footed tortoise rescued from a drug dealer’s basement who roams the League’s office, and Fire Chief, a massive snapping turtle nursed back to health after getting hit by a car. Montgomery captures the joy in the team’s successes and the sorrow in their losses (a particularly grim scene depicts a mass burial for turtles who died of their various injuries), and Patterson’s sketches of spotted and painted turtles in their natural habitats delight. It’s an enjoyable if at times somber account of the everyday travails of dedicated conservationists. Illus.

September 1, 2023

National Book Award finalist and noted naturalist/conservationist Montgomery (The Hawk's Way) muses that people would do well to slow down to "turtle time." To show the benefits of doing that, this book explores the world of turtles, their lives, habits, and behaviors, and their souls, all of which the author says are every bit as complex as those of humans. Also noted is the deep angst and heartbreak that comes from witnessing the cruelty that people can inflict upon other creatures. The author takes readers through her recent personal experiences with the inner workings of the Turtle Rescue League in Southbridge, MA, which rehabilitates injured turtles and either releases them or finds good homes for them. Through Montgomery's perceptions of the organization's people and their work, the book showcases the pure joy that can come from helping and saving these animals and the sadness that stems from their sicknesses and mortality. Acclaimed wildlife artist Peterson's illustrations deepen this work's effectiveness. VERDICT This book expertly demonstrates the advantage that the slowed-down lives of turtles can have on humans. Fans of Montgomery's previous works will love this, and so will nature enthusiasts and environmentalists.--Steve Dixon

Copyright 2023 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 15, 2023
A celebration of a magnificent animal. Melding science and memoir, naturalist Montgomery, author of The Soul of an Octopus, The Hummingbirds' Gift, and other celebrated nature books, shares her experiences as a volunteer at the Turtle Rescue League, in Massachusetts, where, along with wildlife artist Patterson, she worked laboriously to care for "the most imperiled major group of animals on earth." Turtles fall victim to myriad threats: They are often run over by vehicles, "dogs and cats chew them, lawn mowers and farm equipment shred them, curious children harass and kidnap them, and asphalt and concrete displace their nesting areas." Some are caught in the illegal wildlife trade: "A single Yunnan box turtle could command $200,000 on the black market. A Chinese three-striped box turtle, whose powdered plastron is rumored (incorrectly) to cure cancer, can fetch as much as $25,000." Turtle eggs are vulnerable to predators such as raccoons and skunks and even trees, whose roots will penetrate the eggs to suck moisture in times of drought. Besides conveying the turtle's amazing longevity and capacity for healing--they are able to regenerate nerve tissue--Montgomery offers vivid portraits of the distinct personalities of patients under the care of the heroic TRL staff: Among the many box turtles, spotted turtles, sea turtles, tortoises, and painted turtles were the feisty Fire Chief, a huge great snapper; the beloved painted turtle Sugarloaf; and gregarious red-footed tortoise Pizza Man. Each had a special relationship to caregivers-- and to one another. Montgomery was surprised to learn that turtles communicate verbally. "Some species of Australian and South American river turtle nestlings," she reveals, "communicate vocally with each other, and with their mothers, while still inside the egg." Montgomery is justifiably admiring of the devoted TRL staff, who work to heal, restore, and rehabilitate their injured patients so they can be released back into the wild. The book includes Patterson's delicate drawings. An engaging, informative, and colorful journey into the world of turtles.

COPYRIGHT(2023) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

August 1, 2023
Lauded nature writer Montgomery has enthralled readers with her avidly chronicled adventures with octopuses, hummingbirds, and hawks. This time turtles take over her life. She and wildlife artist Matt Patterson, whose drawings enhance the book, volunteered to work with the Turtle Rescue League, run by two extraordinary women. They plunge into turtle rescue work, caring mostly for turtles hit by vehicles (millions are killed on highways each year) and rushing to protect increasingly rare and vulnerable hatchlings. An entrancing storyteller who illuminates facts and feelings with sterling precision, Montgomery recounts dramatic and sweet interactions with these "unlikely, surprising animals," describing a wondrous array of personalities, including that of the astoundingly resilient, attentive, and gigantic snapper called Fire Chief. An ancient species, turtles live long, remarkably adaptive lives, yet they are now "the most imperiled major group of animals on earth" due to habitat destruction, pollution, climate change, and the "murderous, monstrous illegal"" wildlife trade. Montgomery considers the turtle's essential role in diverse origin stories, including those that designate North America Turtle Island--and indeed, the continent does "boast the most turtle species in the world." Deeply affected by these highly intelligent, sensitive earthlings, Montgomery contemplates how nature marks "turtle time, renewing the covenants that keep the world alive and offering us the stuff of eternity."

COPYRIGHT(2023) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.