The Trouble with Turtles
by: Carol Atkins
Published by: Aquarius Press
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Reviewed by C. L. Rossman
The reflections in this little book span 40 years of the author’s life as a newspaper columnist. They range from humorous—like the title column, “the Trouble with Turtles,”—to serious, “The Mugging”—to thoughts on what Atkins has been fighting for all her life: fair play for women and equal protections under the law. The book is divided up into six sections with different columns in each.
Some of Atkins’ writings reflect her home in northwestern Michigan. That’s where the turtles come in. For anyone who lives in rural Michigan, one of the signs of spring is the annual march of the turtles to find mates and nest sites. They plod across paved and dirt back roads, tucking their heads in every time a car or truck swooshes by.
Other more serious pieces of Atkins’ works deal with the “victimology” of a crime, when after one hit, you start thinking like a victim and have a fear of going outside. Others tell in a whimsical kind of way, what the real reason is that men don’t understand women, and why “Cloud Nine is a One-Seater.”
In one essay, labeled “March—Women’s History Month,” we learn about Abigail Adams, asking her husband in 1776 while he was working new laws for the new country, to “remember the ladies.” He laughed.
In just such a way, often using a gentle humor to make her point, Atkins investigates a range of thoughts and ideas in her collected columns. Her writing has appeared in newspapers across Michigan, including the “Detroit Free Press.” Her activities on behalf of women earned her the Athena Award in Manistee, Michigan and a place in the Michigan Women’s Hall of Fame.
Her comments are often wise, good-humored, and easily digestible for that reason.
Armchair Interview says: If you want to learn how a good writer and keen observer thinks, buy this book.
From our armchair to yours...
