The Town of Turtle

PreS-Gr 2—Turtle is a dreamer, a deep thinker, and is somewhat particular. In choosing a color to freshen his walls, he contemplates the best green to match: "Not as bright as grass or lily shoot. But also not as dark as evergreen, or, say, envy." To use the leftover paint, he adds a deck to the exterior. As often happens in decorating, one thing leads to another. He imagines inviting neighbors to toast marshmallows, so he needs a fireplace. That necessitates wood, requiring trees. Soon there is a library, skating rink, and wax museum. Chien's ever-transforming acrylic, pencil, and collage compositions are well suited to the protagonist's fanciful vision. While Turtle's world starts in darkness, he is eventually constructing under a sky dotted with O'Keeffe-like clouds and gliding past lily pads in a pond worthy of Monet. While resting, his dreams about friends moving to town are rendered in vivid bursts of expressionistic forms. A gatefold opening reveals the vertical city in all its resplendent glory. Washed in blue, the denouement reveals cozy bedtime rituals. Perhaps that's what Turtle wanted all along—someone to call to in the dark.