Turtles All the Way Down

Turtles All the Way Down

by John Green

I stayed up late to finish Turtles All the Way Down by John Green, a writer whose other books I have enjoyed reading.  I’d say I didn’t like this one as much…the message is good, but the story, ho-hum.  It is the tale of sixteen year-old Aza Holmes, whose father died suddenly a decade before, and now deals with anxiety and OCD with the fear of dying herself.  She doesn’t take her medications regularly, and so she suffers from severe anxiety when pressured into any given situation and has time to think.  She is smart, does well in school, and actively engages with her friends.  Her best friend, Daisy, becomes a bit of a detective when an old friend’s billionaire father, Russell Pickett, mysteriously disappears while being sought after for a slew of illegal business practices.  Aza had met Pickett’s son, Davis, when they both attended a summer camp for children who had lost a parent (Davis’ mother had died from an illness).  Aza and Daisy are motivated to become sleuths when they hear there is a $100,000 reward for information about Russell Pickett’s whereabouts.  Aza reacquaints herself with Davis who gives the two girls $100,000 to have them stop looking for his dad.  Meanwhile, Aza deals with the reality of her anxiety disorder throughout.  The weird twist to the story is that Davis’ dad left all of his billions to a pet tuatara, which he believes can help provide the key to infinite life.  The story is a bit over the top for me, but I do think the realistic aspects of what OCD can do is an important lesson to all.  In the end, Daisy and Aza do find the missing father, Davis and his younger brother make some choices that leave us with a sense of resignation, and Aza hopes to believe in something more than what her mind keeps telling her.  Again, not my favorite Green book.  I enjoyed Looking for Alaska much more.  Not exactly what I expected from the story, seemed a bit anti-climatic….