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Jon Klassenhas created illustrations for popular series The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place and served as an illustrator on the animated feature film Coraline. His illustrations for Caroline Stutson's Cats Night Out won the Governor General Award in 2010. I Want My Hat Back is the first book he has both written and illustrated. Originally from Niagara Falls, Canada, he lives in Los Angeles, USA.
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5.0 out of 5 starsA great, dark little story about a stolen hat and the consequences
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 24 September 2016
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I have young 2 children, and they both seem to experience the book very differently due to their ages:
My oldest son is 5 (4 when I originally bought this book), and he loves this book. The book is fairly dark in theme and suggestion (no spoilers!), and this is something that my son understood surprisingly well. He actually enjoys the darker suggestion side of the story as much as the actual story telling itself. The amount of text itself is fairly short, but enough to tell the story about a stolen hat perfectly for young children. It also means it's not too long at bed time, or if you want to tell a quicker story.
My youngest son has just turned 2 years old (he was 1 at the time of buying this) and loves the pictures. He actually gets a little obsessed with the pages that have a large fish image. He'd open the book and just look at them for hours.
There's something special about the story in this book that children seem to be heavily drawn to. This is a firm favourite in our family.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 18 September 2019
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I love the simple yet beautiful illustrations in this book. This is a great book for children 5 years and up! I’ve read it to 12 year olds and they find it hilarious too. As an adult I also love the humour. It’s a great book for reading with others and having a bit of a laugh!
This is a superb book. I think all children should have this book if only because it will make the adult reading it smile as much as the child. Highly recommended and on the list with The Gruffalo and Percy the Park Keeper amongst many other favourite children's books.
5.0 out of 5 starsAnother great book from Jon Klassen
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 16 December 2012
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I was given Hat Back as a gift for my daughter (age 2) last Christmas and it was an instant hit with her. I saw this book and instantly ordered it knowing it would go down well. They are not your average bedtime storybooks, they are tales with sticky endings, and amusing twists. A small fish thinks he can get away with stealing the hat belonging to a much bigger fish....does he? You'll have to buy it and see... A lovely story with a moral easily understood by preschoolers along with beautiful illustrations.
Great illustrations but I didn’t like the storyline accompanying them - is it trying to make children think for themselves about the questions it raises?