We the Sea Turtles: A Collection of Island Stories

Nine different kids, from Canada and the USA to Australia, Indonesia and Malaysia, confront climate crisis and anxiety in this book of short stories. Selma overcomes her shyness by sharing her love of nature with grieving siblings who visit her summer island home in Canada. Angus helps a dog and protects a sea turtle nest during a wildfire on his Australian island home. Sasha helps clean up the Florida coastline to make it safe for nesting turtles and hatchlings. Anise is calm and resourceful enough to help her mom get back on her feet after they lose their Australian caravan home to massive flooding. Yani remembers the upheaval of the 2004 tsunami as she prepares to start a new life in Canada.

Most of the stories are quite short and don’t have a lot of room for plot and character development. What they do have room for is snapshots of moments in time for kids living in very different circumstances which will be illuminating for readers. The best of the stories present a problem and resolve it by the end of the tale. This may be something small, like Edi’s gaining his father’s approval for his identity as a dancer. Or it may be something big, like Anise’s plan to buy bus tickets so she and her mom can go stay with relatives. A few of the stories are a bit thin, but most create a small world, an interesting child and a satisfying resolution.

There are plenty of links to tie these stories together. They are all set on islands, and all feature turtle sightings. With one exception, all of the children are sensitive to their environments, deeply loving their natural surroundings. And most of these children feel the weight of climate change. Some feel a personal responsibility to make things better while others have their lives upended by climate disasters. Through a combination of help and support from adults, and their own actions, they are able to feel better about the uncertainties of the world.

We the Sea Turtles doesn’t pull punches about the gravity of the global climate crisis or the destructiveness of natural disasters. Yani has lost her father and her home, Anise has lost her home. However, the tone remains extremely optimistic. The hope comes from action, and, in most stories, the protagonist, rather than remaining passive, finds an active way to confront the future. The book is not preachy, but it does present kids with ways to help make the world better rather than just giving up or feeling small. While Sasha helps clean garbage from the coastline to aid nesting turtles, he also keeps an “environmental infractions” notebooks, documenting his family’s carbon footprint. He finds this footprint extremely upsetting, but, when he tries to talk about it, his family ask him to concentrate on happy things. By the end of the story, they understand his point of view, and join in the beach cleanup. In the stories, people support each other, and this sense of community and compassion is what lifts their spirits.

There is lots of fruitful content for thought and discussion. The book includes supplementary material about turtles and their many amazing attributes as well as an interview with the author. Ultimately, We the Sea Turtles is a book about the wonder of nature and the tenacity and beauty of its creatures, in particular the sea turtle. By encouraging kids to love and be inspired by their natural surroundings, author Michelle Kadarusman hopes to encourage a generation of children to play a positive role in the future of our planet.