Published: 27th September 2011
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Illustrator: Jon Klassen
Pages: 32
Format: Picture Book
★ ★ ★ ★ ★ – 5 Stars
The bear’s hat is gone, and he wants it back. Patiently and politely, he asks the animals he comes across, one by one, whether they have seen it. Each animal says no, some more elaborately than others. But just as the bear begins to despond, a deer comes by and asks a simple question that sparks the bear’s memory and renews his search with a vengeance.
This is the first book in Klassen’s Hat trilogy and it is a brilliant story that both children and adults can enjoy. Ideal to be read alone or out loud the story is told entirely through dialogue with Klassen’s wit and straightforward sentences as Bear asks everyone he meets if they have seen his hat.
I loved the call back to the earlier dialogue and I liked that the bear politely went through all the animals he found, each having a different response. It never gets repetitive and Klassen includes enough animals that it is long enough but also has a few surprises.
The illustrations are part of the charm because the expression Klassen gives the animals are fantastic, and a lot is said through staring. The colours are dulled but still stand out on the page, the focus is on the animal interactions with only a little background but it isn’t missed. A lot of the time too the narrative is a companion to the dialogue, one not quite working without the other. There is something magical about Klassen’s work that makes the entire experience delightful.
The dialogue is the real gem and Bear is a great character. As the story progresses you see that Bear is not a bad bear, he just wants his hat back. He is polite and helpful and no one surely can blame him for anything that happens. If anything even happened at all. Which is doesn’t.
A fantastic beginning to a trilogy. It’s simple, yet clever, and it is certainly unexpected.
You can purchase I Want My Hat Back via the following
QBD | Booktopia | Book Depository
Bear does not want to go to the library. He is quite sure he already has all the books he will ever need. Yet the relentlessly cheery Mouse, small and grey and bright-eyed, thinks different. When Bear reluctantly agrees to go with his friend to the big library, neither rocket ships nor wooden canoes are enough for Bear’s picky tastes. How will Mouse ever find the perfect book for Bear?
No one listens to Archie when he says he is a bear so he leaves home and goes into the woods where he makes friends with a bear. A very small boy in a bear suit and a very large bear share the fun of pretending, adventuring in the woods, and a honey sandwich next to a warm fire on a cold day. Which is really the boy, and which is the bear? It doesn’t matter—you are who you say you are. 
When you don’t know what to do. When you haven’t got a clue, go and talk to Miss Theroux. Who, who, who …? Miss Prue … That’s who! 
It was a special day at the Lodge. There was going to be a party. A big party. Abby the dog was there. Jasper the cat was there. But so was a scruffy little dog. The Prime Minister receives many letters and emails from children asking about Jasper and Abby, and he often tells his friends, colleagues, and staff stories of the antics of his family pets.
