Holiday Sale! Get an annual membership for 20% off!

Summary and Reviews of Turtles All the Way Down by John Green

Turtles All the Way Down by John Green

Turtles All the Way Down

by John Green
  • BookBrowse Review:
  • Critics' Consensus:
  • First Published:
  • Oct 10, 2017, 304 pages
  • Paperback:
  • Jun 2019, 320 pages
  • Rate this book

About This Book

Book Summary

#1 bestselling author John Green returns with his first new novel since The Fault in Our Stars!

Sixteen-year-old Aza never intended to pursue the mystery of fugitive billionaire Russell Pickett, but there's a hundred thousand dollar reward at stake and her Best and Most Fearless Friend, Daisy, is eager to investigate. So together, they navigate the short distance and broad divides that separate them from Russell Pickett's son, Davis.

Aza is trying. She is trying to be a good daughter, a good friend, a good student, and maybe even a good detective, while also living within the ever-tightening spiral of her own thoughts. 

In his long-awaited return, John Green, the acclaimed, award-winning author of Looking for Alaska and The Fault in Our Stars, shares Aza's story with shattering, unflinching clarity in this brilliant novel of love, resilience, and the power of lifelong friendship.

Hear John Green read the first chapter from Turtles All The Way Down:

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $45 for 12 months or $15 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

Reviews

BookBrowse Review

BookBrowse

While I've always enjoyed John Green's novels for smart (but not pretentious) writing and the natural vitality of his voice, Turtles All the Way Down is the first of his books where I felt his characters rise out of the pages to become their own complex, real-life people. Anyone who has enjoyed Green before will definitely find a new favorite here and even those who are on the fence about him may find new intricacies and nuance to his storytelling in Turtles...continued

Full Review Members Only (728 words)

(Reviewed by Erin Szczechowski).

Media Reviews

The Globe and Mail
A full-on emotional bleed-out.... John Green hasn’t created a book as much as he’s created a place—a place to have your most indefinable and grotesque thoughts articulated, to ponder the disconnected reality you experience.

The New York Times
A wrenching and revelatory novel.

USA Today
A thoughtful look at mental illness . . . Turtles explores the definition of happy endings, whether love is a tragedy or a failure, and a universal lesson for us all: ‘You work with what you have'.

Entertainment Weekly
Funny, clever, and populated with endearing characters.

People
A tender story about learning to cope when the world feels out of control.

The Wall Street Journal
There is tenderness and wisdom here, and a high quotient of big ideas.

The Guardian (UK)
A new modern classic.

Booklist
Starred Review. A richly rewarding read…the most mature of Green’s work to date and deserving of all the accolades that are sure to come its way.

Publishers Weekly
Starred Review. In an age where troubling events happen almost weekly, this deeply empathetic novel about learning to live with demons and love one’s imperfect self is timely and important.

School Library Journal
A deeply resonant and powerful novel that will inform and enlighten readers even as it breaks their hearts. A must-buy.

Kirkus Reviews
Aza would claim that opinions about this book are unfairly influenced by 'the gut-brain informational cycle,' which makes it hard to say what anyone else will think—but this is the new John Green; people will read this, or not, regardless of someone else's gut flora.

Reader Reviews

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $45 for 12 months or $15 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

Beyond the Book



Green Tries to Erase the Stigma Surrounding Mental Health

John Green has never shied away from weighty issues. From depression and potential suicide in his debut novel, Looking for Alaska, to terminal illness in The Fault in Our Stars, and now obsessive-compulsive disorder in his latest novel, Turtles All the Way Down, it seems that Green is at his strongest when he is exploring such meaty and delicate topics.

In Turtles All the Way Down, Aza's obsessive-compulsive disorder affects every area of her life, and is constantly on her mind. Green has not been silent about his own struggles with OCD, and recently gave an interview with Time on writing about an issue so personal to him. "I had to write with enough distance from myself to make it OK, to make it feel safe. And so Aza has somewhat ...

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $45 for 12 months or $15 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

Read-Alikes

Read-Alikes Full readalike results are for members only

If you liked Turtles All the Way Down, try these:

  • The Lightness of Hands jacket

    The Lightness of Hands

    by Jeff Garvin

    Published 2021

    About this book

    More by this author

    A quirky and heartfelt coming-of-age story about a teen girl with bipolar II who signs her failed magician father up to perform his legendary but failed illusion on live TV in order to make enough money to pay for the medications they need - from the author of Symptoms of Being Human. Perfect for fans of Adi Alsaid, David Arnold, and Arvin Ahmadi.

  • The Easy Part of Impossible jacket

    The Easy Part of Impossible

    by Sarah Tomp

    Published 2021

    About this book

    More by this author

    After an injury forces Ria off the diving team, an unexpected friendship with Cotton, a guy on the autism spectrum, helps her come to terms with the abusive relationship she's been in with her former coach.

We have 12 read-alikes for Turtles All the Way Down, but non-members are limited to two results. To see the complete list of this book's read-alikes, you need to be a member.
More books by John Green
Search read-alikes
How we choose read-alikes
Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $45 for 12 months or $15 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

Top Picks

  • Book Jacket: Before the Mango Ripens
    Before the Mango Ripens
    by Afabwaje Kurian
    Set in 1971, this work of historical fiction begins in the aftermath of an apparent miracle that has...
  • Book Jacket: Margo's Got Money Troubles
    Margo's Got Money Troubles
    by Rufi Thorpe
    Forgive me if I begin this review with an awkward confession. My first impression of author Rufi ...
  • Book Jacket: Our Evenings
    Our Evenings
    by Alan Hollinghurst
    Alan Hollinghurst's novel Our Evenings is the fictional autobiography of Dave Win, a British ...
  • Book Jacket: Graveyard Shift
    Graveyard Shift
    by M. L. Rio
    Following the success of her debut novel, If We Were Villains, M. L. Rio's latest book is the quasi-...

BookBrowse Book Club

Book Jacket
The Berry Pickers
by Amanda Peters
A four-year-old Mi'kmaq girl disappears, leaving a mystery unsolved for fifty years.

Members Recommend

  • Book Jacket

    Pony Confidential
    by Christina Lynch

    In this whimsical mystery, a grumpy pony must clear his beloved human's name from a murder accusation.

Who Said...

The truth does not change according to our ability to stomach it

Click Here to find out who said this, as well as discovering other famous literary quotes!

Wordplay

Solve this clue:

F the M

and be entered to win..