Tortoise Reform

By Piers Anthony

Rowan is a very lonely ten-year-old girl. Her parents sent her to stay with her aunt and uncle, and she feels rejected by everyone around her. She tends to get into accidental mischief, which causes Rowan's relatives to keep threatening to send her to boarding school.

In another dimension, Gopher is a burrowing tortoise. In Gopher’s world animals are intelligent and communicate telepathically, while all humans are "dull" and only used as beasts of burden. Gopher and four other friends live together as burrow mates. For their burrow to be officially recognized by the Elders they must find one more for their group. The problem is they are all too young and no one wants to join them to help protect the burrow.

One day, while digging a new tunnel, Gopher falls through a sinkhole and discovers a whole new realm. There Gopher meets Rowan and discovers to his horror that in this new world humans can talk, and while they don’t know how to use telepathy yet, the fact that they communicate shocks Gopher. What a catastrophe it would be if humans suddenly became intelligent!

Becoming friends, Rowan learns to communicate telepathically and vows to help Gopher find his way back home. But her task just got a lot more complicated when Gopher is captured by a tortoise hunter and Rowan discovers that construction will soon begin over the sinkhole leading to Gopher's world. The race is on to rescue Gopher, stop the construction, and get him back home again before someone discovers Gopher's secret.

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About the Author

Piers Anthony

Piers Anthony is one of the world's most prolific and popular authors. His fantasy Xanth novels have been read and loved by millions of readers around the world, and have been on the New York Times Best Seller list twenty-one times. Although Piers is mostly known for fantasy and science fiction, he has written several novels in other genres as well, including historical fiction, martial arts, and horror. Piers lives with his wife in a secluded woods hidden deep in Central Florida.

Reviews

Tortoise Reform by famed author Piers Anthony is filled with characters that are intelligent and adorable. They are kind and accepting of each other. They take care of each other. Perhaps we humans could learn a few lessons from these animals. I really enjoyed this book. The plot is interesting and takes the reader on a journey through the mind of a very unhappy little girl. There were times when I wondered if Rowan was imagining the interaction with the animals; perhaps they were her stuffed animals. At times I was reminded of "Alice in Wonderland," only Gopher was Alice. There is a deeper message behind this book, one of tolerance, kindness and caring. I highly recommend this book to all readers age 9 and over. —Debra Gaynor for Reader Views

I found the story delightful... Piers’ treatment is reminiscent of the literary works of C. S. Lewis or Lewis Carroll, who present language considered adultish, yet is much enjoyed by children. I also love the characterization of Rowan. She remains charming, enthusiastic and relatable throughout the tale. Piers has a good grasp of the concerns and interests of children, in my opinion. All in all, it is a tale well-told, and I hope it gains enough readership to prompt Piers to write the sequel (it does beg for one). I felt compelled to return to the story each evening until I had finished the book. Piers Anthony is, after all, a master storyteller. —Kathe Gogolewski, Amazon.com Reviewer