Turtle in Paradise

Title: Turtle in Paradise

 

Author: Jennifer L. Holm

 

Summary: In 1935, 11 year old Turtle has been sent to live in Key West with her cousins and aunt and uncle. She has never met them before - she has never even been to the town before, but once she gets there, things start out rough. Her cousins and their friends - all boys - do not take very kindly to her at first, but after a few days, tension eases and they slowly begin to accept her into their babysitting club. Turtle is beginning to make a new life for herself - she meets her grandmother for the first time, and is the only one who can seem to reach her, and she begins to feel at home. But then, Turtle discovers a treasure map and ventures away with the boys to find the treasure, just as Turtle's mother and suspicious boyfriend Archie show up in town.

 

Comments: I tried to read this book several years ago and I could not make it through the first 3 chapters. I decided that I had not given it a fair chance, and with a clearer understanding of the time that it was set in, I decided to pick it up once more. I am so glad that I did! The story is great and Turtle has something special to offer. Turtle is spunky and a hardcore girl. But the theme in the book is that "turtles may have a hard shell, but they have a soft underside." This is rather true in Turtle's case.

I would recommend this book to anyone 8+, but I read it around age 9 or 10 and could not really get into the story, so perhaps 10+ would be best. Really there isn't anything so "iffy" in the book, so the age doesn't matter.

I am so glad I gave this wonderful book a second chance!

 

Rating: 5 stars