cheechengkee

Who can resist a story that begins “Once, long, long ago … yet somehow, not so very long …”? Would it not be wonderful if “… all the beings of the world could speak … and understand one another …”?

Beautiful, peaceful … until the argument.

It is the quiet one who speaks the wisest words. Old Turtle, the quiet one, who knows how to stop the argument.

We need a quiet one today.

A perfect melding of story and art, for all ages and all people. Do not miss this one.

Old Turtle is a gorgeous watercolor picture book that's meant at least as much for adults as for children. In pre-human times, an argument begins among the animals over what God is like: higher than the mountains, more sturdy than the rock, farther and brighter than the stars, yet closer to the earth than the ants. Divisions occur when every being claims the imago dei only for him or herself, thereby excluding others' experiences of the divine. So Old Turtle offers this resolution: "God is show more all that we dream of, and all that we seek, all that we come from and all that we can find." But the truest expression of God comes not with our own realization of the imago dei within ourselves, but when we see it in one another and in all of creation. show less

A beautiful folktale about all of nature looking for God and claiming Him to be like them. The breeze: "He is a wind who in never still."; the mountain: "god is a snowy peak, high above the clouds." This leads to a great argument that only the Old Turtle, and his wisdom can quiet. He tells of the coming of a new race ... the people. The story then goes on to speak of how the people forgot where God was, arguing amongst themselves, and they end up destroying the earth. Then a large voice show more speaks; this time the elements of nature no longer claim God to be only like them, but remind the people that he is everywhere: "The voice seemed to come from the mountain who rumbled 'Sometimes I see God swimming, in the dark blue depths of the sea.' " ... and the people finally listen and remember.

Along with a beautiful story, the watercolor illustrations enhance to tale.

I will use this book in my folklore unit as an example of a folktale ... when a culture uses nature/animals/people to teach a lesson and about the values of that culture. show less

One of the most sophisticated picture books I've read. Although not everyone will agree with the universal idea of God, this is a an awe-inspiring book.