This Is Not My Hat (Irma S and James H Black Honor for Excellence in Children's Literature (Awards)) [Hardcover]

Jon Klassen (Author, Illustrator)

Book Description

Release date: October 9, 2012 | Age Range: 4 - 8 years | Series: Irma S and James H Black Honor for Excellence in Children's Literature (Awards)

WINNER OF THE 2013 CALDECOTT MEDAL!

From the creator of the #1 New York Times best-selling and award-winning I Want My Hat Back comes a second wry tale.

When a tiny fish shoots into view wearing a round blue topper (which happens to fit him perfectly), trouble could be following close behind. So it’s a good thing that enormous fish won’t wake up. And even if he does, it’s not like he’ll ever know what happened. . . . Visual humor swims to the fore as the best-selling Jon Klassen follows his breakout debut with another deadpan-funny tale.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Amazon Best Books of the Year 2012: Jon Klassen first surprised readers with his runaway best seller, I Want My Hat Back, and his follow-up, This Is Not My Hat is an inside out version that is even more fun. Not only did Klassen go with a dark color scheme where the last was light, the action takes place underwater with much of the story told through the expressive illustrations of sea creatures. From the little fish who steals a bowler hat to the crab who sells him out with eyeballs pointing the way, there are lots of laughs along with lessons. This time Klassen created an ambiguous ending that invites lively conversation about the possible outcomes and ultimately leaves it up to the child to decide the little fish's fate with every reading. --Seira Wilson

From School Library Journal

PreS-Gr 1-With this new creation, Klassen repeats the theme from I Want My Hat Back (Candlewick, 2011), but with a twist. The narrator here is the thief-a small, self-confident fish who has pilfered a little blue bowler from a big sleeping fish. He wastes no time or words in confessing his crime as he swims across the page announcing, "This hat is not mine. I just stole it." He continues his narrative with no regrets, but with a bit of rationalizing ("It was too small for him anyway.") as he swims to his hiding place, unaware that the big fish is in quiet pursuit. Readers, of course, are in on this little secret. When the two disappear into a spread filled with seaweed, the narration goes silent, and youngsters can easily surmise what happens as the big fish reemerges with the tiny blue bowler atop his head. Simplicity is key in both text and illustrations. The black underwater provides the perfect background for the mostly gray-toned fish and seaweed while the monochromatic palette strips the artwork down to essential, yet exquisite design. Movement is indicated with a trail of small white bubbles. This not-to-be-missed title will delight children again and again.-Carolyn Janssen, Public Library of Cincinnati & Hamilton County, Cincinnati, OHα(c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Age Range: 4 - 8 years
  
• Hardcover: 40 pages
• Publisher: Candlewick; First Edition edition (October 9, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0763655996
• ISBN-13: 978-0763655990
• Product Dimensions: 11.5 x 0.4 x 8.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (142 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #314 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #1 in Books > Children's Books > Animals > Fish
  • #2 in Books > Children's Books > Social Situations > Values
  • #4 in Books > Children's Books > Mysteries & Detectives

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

57 of 64 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Abbygail age 6 review October 16, 2012

By Darilee Bednar

Format:Hardcover

Received as a review book at the PNBA Bookseller convention Tacoma WA.

Reviewer: Abbygail aged 6
and her Grammy, aged old

Abbygail says: My (first grade) science teacher read "I Want My Hat Back" and I liked it. I read "This Is Not My Hat" by myself with Grammy's help.

The words were easy or hard to read. I sounded-out the hard words and now they are easy.

I liked the story and I liked the big fish. The bubbles create movement.

The little fish was bad and the big fish was just a big fish. You don't steal from a big fish.

Grammy says: Jon was kind enough to speak at the bookseller convention and explain his thought process in creating this book. I was going to take notes but I was laughing too hard.

I found the colors muted - mostly in browns, greens, greys, and black. The drawings were simple. The language was limited and the story line very straight forward. The dialog is all little fish comments. The big fish actually shows all the emotions Jon Klassen proves himself an expert at editing both language and content. In other words, Jon is a genius.

My first grade Abbygail has taken to reading and easily read most of little fish comments. The words she had problems with like "probably" and "won't" were repeated over and over and she quickly recognized them. This is a quick read even for a noobie reader and at first she wanted to race through the story until she noticed the EYE... and then later the bubbles which she explained to me shows movement. "See grammy big fish isn't moving because bubbles go up... and now big fish is moving."

Be prepared to read this book over and over. There is a moral. The ending is open for discussion.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Another dark hat tale... January 16, 2013

By Psyche

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

This Is Not My Hat is a companion piece to Jon Klassen's earlier I Want My Hat Back, only it takes place underwater instead of in a forest; and the story is told from the point of view of the thief and not the, er, victim. The end result, however, is pretty much the same. If you don't like I Want My Hat Back because of the conclusion, you will not like This Is Not My Hat, either. It helps to have a sense of humor. It helps even more if your humor has dark tendencies.

The artwork for This is Not My Hat is every bit as wickedly delightful as the earlier book's, with a bit more of a build-up in the tension and a seek-and-find on one of the two-page spreads.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A fantastic little book January 11, 2013

By Tikijose

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

A morality tale with humor and wonderful art. Teach your children that just because you can get away with something doesn't mean it's right. Well told and beautiful pages make this a keeper.