Review Of Turtles Heading Home!

Happy World Turtle Day! In honor of this special holiday I'm reviewing Turtles Heading Home! Although the title won't be available until July 15, you can pre-order it now.

More About Turtles Heading Home!

Kemp’s ridley sea turtles need help! Young readers will learn about the rescue efforts necessary to save these endangered animals largely due to climate change. A riveting nonfiction read for 6-9-year-old animal-enthusiasts, future veterinarians, and conservationists that will motivate compassionate kids to start taking action now!

The waters around Cape Cod used to cool off gradually, signaling to sea turtles that it was time to swim south. But now, due to climate change, the water stays warm too long and cools off too quickly, making the turtles too cold to migrate.

Turtles Heading Home! follows the efforts of conservationists as they rescue the turtles, nurse them back to health, and release them into warmer waters. The operation involves hundreds of people, from the volunteers patrolling beaches, to the veterinarians in the hospital, to the pilots who fly the turtles south. All of them share the goal of helping save the Kemp’s ridley sea turtle—the most endangered sea turtle in the world.

The three co-authors of Turtles Heading Home! collectively have over 80 books they have written on their shelves!

More About Liza Ketchum

Liza Ketchum is the author of seventeen books for young people, including The Life Fantastic and The Last Garden. Her books have appeared on the ALA’s Best Book lists and the New York Public Library’s 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing. She and her husband divide their time between Vermont and Massachusetts.

More About Jacqueline Briggs Martin

Jacqueline Briggs Martin is the author of over twenty picture books for children, including award-winners Snowflake Bentley, a Caldecott medal winner, and Creekfinding: A True Story, recipient of the Green Earth Award for Environmental Writing for Children and a Riverby Award. Jacqueline lives in Iowa with her husband.

More About Phyliss Root

Phyllis Root is the author of fifty books for children, including Big Belching Bog; Plant a Pocket of Prairie; One North Star; Big Momma Makes the World, a Boston Globe-Horn Book Award winner; and The Lost Forest, a National Outdoor Book Award winner. Phyllis resides in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Thoughts About Turtles Heading Home!

The book illustrated with photos traces the life of a Kemp's ridley sea turtles from the beaches of the Gulf of Mexico to Cape Cod, following the journey of those turtles that get caught by cold weather in Cape Cod and have to be rescued, rehabilitated, sometimes flown to other aquariums and eventually back to the beach where they were born.

Any child who loves animals or the beach will enjoy this story about who a network of people throughout the country join together to help turtles. It also personalizes the story of the volunteers of all ages. In turns the book is exciting (and a bit scary), funny, inspiring and, of course, educational. It also includes informational pages about climate change, why Kemp's ridley turtles became endangered and how readers can help turtles.

This book can also show children that one person can make a difference.

A Little Extra

To celebrate World Turtle Day here are a few facts:

• there are more than 360 species of turtles

• turtles are divided into 13 families including sea turtles, soft-shelled turtles, snapping turtles and tortoises

• there are only seven types of sea turtles: loggerhead, green turtle, leatherback, hawksbill, Kemp's ridley, flatback, and olive ridley

• turtles are on every continent except Antarctica

• turtles come in all sizes: from 5 ounces to 1,500 pounds - from 3.1 inches to 5.25 feet