  | True and lucky life of a turtle Author: Montgomery, Sy | |
| Price: $23.98 | ||
Summary:
Here is the true story of a very lucky turtle. His story began long ago when he was hatched from a small egg on a late summer day. After decades of traveling between his summer pond behind the firehouse and his winter pond across the street, he never could have guessed that on one October day he would become unlucky.
| Illustrator: | Patterson, Matt |
Reviews:
Kirkus Reviews (+) (07/01/25)
Full Text Reviews:
Other - 06/23/2025 Resilience forms the backbone of this heartening new collaboration between Montgomery and Patterson (The Book of Turtles), which spotlights the real-life story of a snapping turtle named Fire Chief. From ping-pong-ball-size egg to quarter-size baby to full-grown adult who’s the weight of a lawn mower, the starring reptile is presented as the beneficiary of incredible lifelong luck. Science-oriented storytelling offers informed guesses about Fire Chief’s early years, leading up to his arrival at a rural fire station’s heart-shaped pond, where he’s eventually spotted sunning on a log. Time passes-underscoring the species’ incredible longevity-and the slow-moving animal’s luck comes to an end during an annual migration across a former country lane that’s been developed into a state highway. Luckily, people from the Turtle Rescue League arrive with a plan for rehabilitation, including a special wheelchair, and "human friends" eventually create a new, safer aquatic abode that requires no further road crossings-"What a lucky turtle!" The book’s artist, revealed to own the property on which Fire Chief lives, clearly has firsthand knowledge of the subject, relayed via intricate, hyper-realistic paintings that lend an appropriately documentary feel to this uplifting tale. Human background characters are portrayed with various skin tones. More about Fire Chief and resources conclude. Ages 4-8. (Sept.) - Copyright 2025
