The worst thing in the world is when you eagerly anticipate the last book in a series, you finally get it after waiting for what seems like eons, and, after flipping through its pages with excitement, the book lets you down. It’s such a buzz kill. So you can imagine why I opened the first pages of Jon Klassen’s We Found A Hat with a little bit of trepidation. It’s hard to follow up two outstanding books with a third and final one. But Klassen didn’t just deliver, he nailed it. And the third installment of the “hat” series may just be my favorite of them all.
We Found a Hat tells the story of two turtles who find a lone hat in the desert. They both know the hat would look great on each of them, but they decide to leave the hat where it is rather than risk the injustice of one taking the hat and leaving the other without it. But what happens when one of the turtles decides that taking the hat for himself is just a little too tempting?
We Found A Hat differs from its predecessors in one major way- no one, in this story, steals a hat. Instead, the two turtles find a way to make peace with the fact that there is one hat, yet two of them. I love the way Klassen captures the longing that children often feel when they want a coveted object so badly but know it is not right for them to take it. It is such a common experience, and many children simply can’t reign in their desire to take the item for themselves. Not here, though. The bonds of friendship are strong in this book, strong enough to keep the turtles on the same team. Even through minimal words and spare yet beautifully complex illustrations (the eyes! the eyes!), this unwavering friendship comes through in full force. We love it — two mighty trunks up!
Want the book? Get it here! WE FOUND A HAT, by Jon Klassen. *This is an affiliate link.
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