Author Description

Aretha, a tiny tortoise hatchling, joins the New Hampshire Creep. Everything is fine in the beginning, but it soon becomes apparent that she is growing faster and bigger than the other tortoises in the creep, and she becomes sad and upset about her size, and being different than the other tortoises. Aretha and the other tortoises explore the issue of her size... how it makes them all feel, and how being different doesn't always feel the same as being special. With the help of her friends, Darwin and Persephone and Chili, Aretha comes to understand that the things that make us different don't necessarily make us better or worse than those around us.