From Booklist
In the 1940s, young Nedworth Wentworthstein is traveling across America with his family when he meets an Indian shaman, who slips him a sacred stone turtle. Ned soon discovers that bad guys are after the turtle, and he enlists the help of newfound friends (including the ghost of a bellboy) to help him protect his treasure. Eventually, though, the turtle falls into the wrong hands, and Ned is forced to confront terrifying, magical beasts. There are actually two novels here: one centers around the supernatural world, where Ned's epic battles play out; the other details 1940s America, from the pleasures of riding the Super Chief to the slightly off-kilter culture of postwar Southern California. The two parts don't really come together into a cohesive whole; the plotline that includes observations of late 1940s America provides the stronger narrative.
