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Who Wants a Tortoise?    by Dave Keane & K. G. Campbell Amazon.com order for
Who Wants a Tortoise?
by Dave Keane
Order:  USA  Can
Knopf, 2016 (2016)
Hardcover, e-Book
* * *   Reviewed by Hilary Williamson

The cover of Who Wants a Tortoise? says it all - a very angry little girl stalking away from a mild looking tortoise; she clearly didn't want one for a pet - she'd asked for a puppy and the inside cover notes her POV, e.g. 'dogs like swimming. / tortoises sink like rocks.'

Her story opens, 'I've been waiting my whole life to get a puppy, a rascally guy with a waggly tail.' And she's been getting ready - listing names, reading about training, dreaming about the adventures they'll share. But then she gets a tortoise for her birthday, and 'WHO WANTS A TORTOISE?!'

Why, we wonder? Her dad is allergic to dogs. At first, the tortoise is a huge disappointment, but gradually the girl finds creative ways to have fun with her new pet, enjoys showing off what she learns about it - and is devastated when it goes missing. When she finds her tortoise again, she even gives it a name.

Read this amusingly illustrated, charming story with a child and explore ways together of turning a disappointment into a positive life lesson.

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