There are turtles with soft shells, turtles with googly eyes, turtles with necks longer than their bodies, and turtles whose shells glow in the dark!

And each turtle, of each of the more than 300 kinds, is an individual.

From National Book Award finalist and New York Times bestseller Sy Montgomery comes an ode to one of the most diverse, fascinating, and beloved species on the planet: turtles. With dazzling illustrations and emotionally engaging, fact-filled text, this picture book will speak to the wisdom these long-lived animals can lend.

Everyone loves turtles. And no wonder: long-lived, unhurried, and ancient, these shelled reptiles are fascinating.

Turtles are also endlessly surprising. There are turtles with soft shells, turtles with googly eyes, turtles with necks longer than their bodies, and turtles whose shells glow in the dark!

And each turtle, of each of the more than 300 kinds, is an individual. You’ll meet some of them here: Lonesome George, the last of his kind on Earth. And Myrtle, the 90-year-old green sea turtle, who has 7,000 followers on Facebook.

What questions might you ask a turtle? You’ll find many of the answers in this gorgeous compendium—and perhaps be inspired to help at a time that these reptiles, who evolved at the same time as the dinosaurs, face the deadliest dangers of their more than 380-million year history.