Concord Reads

2026

The Concord Public Library and the Concord Public Library Foundation are proud to announce this year’s book title and author for Concord Reads! We have chosen Of Time and Turtles - Mending the World Shell by Shattered Shell, written by celebrated author Sy Montgomery and illustrated by Matt Patterson! We have also chosen their children’s book The True and Lucky Life of a Turtle!

The New York Times writes, “Montgomery, who has written dozens of books on animals, brings a pleasant mixture of playfulness and reverence to the subject. The turtle emerges as an unlikely symbol of resilience and optimism - an example of what is possible when we refuse to give up on the most vulnerable among us.”

While researching subject material for her 38 books for adults and children, nationally bestselling author Sy Montgomery has been chased by an angry silverback gorilla in Rwanda, hunted by a tiger in India, and swum with piranhas, electric eels and pink dolphins in the Amazon. Her work has taken her from the cloud forest of Papua New Guinea (for a book on tree kangaroos) to the Altai Mountains of the Gobi (for another on snow leopards.) For The Soul of an Octopus, (a National Book Award finalist) she befriended octopuses at the New England aquarium and scuba dived and snorkeled with wild octopuses in Mexico and French Polynesia; next she drew on her scuba skills to cage dive with great white sharks and swim freely with giant oceanic manta rays .

For her most recent national bestseller for adults, Of Time and Turtles, she befriended a 42-pound wild snapping turtle named Fire Chief, who shows his extraordinary trust by allowing her to feed him by hand.

She lives in New Hampshire with her husband, the writer Howard Mansfield, and their border collie Thurber.

Each year for Concord Reads, the Concord Public Library Foundation strives for works that connect to New Hampshire; either written by a New Hampshire author or written about New Hampshire. Our goal is to offer a common reading experience for as many readers as possible. Beginning March 5th, copies of our title will be available to library patrons, and in March and April, activities will be offered for both adults and children that connect to the reading. Our culminating event is a presentation by the author at the Bank of NH Stage! This year we will meet Sy Montgomery and illustrator Matt Patterson on the evening of Thursday, April 23rd at 6:00PM - RSVP Required!