Charlotte is six weeks shy of ten years old, and is very observant for her age. She has a pet turtle named Fred and a beetle named Bob that she sometimes takes out in her pocket. She is learning to play piano. Charlotte has colorful tastes. Her posters in her room are filled with motion, her bedspread is multicolored and her side of the room is a state of perpetual disorder. Charlotte has several pets other than Fred and Bob who share her side of the room. Wayne, the gerbil, Sheldon, the snake, Whiskers, the mouse and Loretta, the chameleon all occupy terrariums of various sizes on her bookshelf. She likes these pets better than a dog or cat, which she can not protect as easily.