A turtle afraid of small dark places, and therefore of crawling into his shell, asks a variety of animals for advice, only to find out that each has a fear of its own.
Franklin, a turtle, says he can swallow seventy-six flies in the blink of an eye. Then he is asked to prove it. Franklin learns it is better to tell the truth.
When Franklin the turtle's best friend Otter moves away it makes him feel sad, grumpy, and a little bit mean, but Franklin cheers up after sharing a heart-to-talk and a hug with his dad.
Franklin is missing out on a lot of fun because he cannot ride his bike without training wheels, but when his mother points out that learning new things takes a lot of work, he decides to try again.