2002-06-10 Shortlisted for the English Association's Best Books Awards

How do you encourage the very young to care about the survival of vulnerable creatures? Nicola Davies and Jane Chapman do so by telling in words and pictures the fascinating story of one Loggerhead turtle's life. The tale begins in a turtle nursery when she is 'not much bigger than a bottle top' and shows us her journey of thousands of miles through seaweed jungles and turquoise lagoons until she has grown as 'big as a barrow' and ready to lay her eggs. Much is unknown about the years before a turtle returns to the beach on which she was born to have her young- 'she leaves no trace or track for you to follow'. Children like the thought of secrets and the book is honest about all that remains to be discovered about the turtle's journey.
The narrative is told in large, clear print while extra information waves across the page in italic script. The pictures of the creature are most appealing and show how she moves through different environments. Children will particularly like the page showing the baby turtles emerging from their 'squidgy ping- pong' eggs...