Quick Booktalk
An elderly man who lives alone is feeding the squirrels when a cat crawls into his hat and becomes his new friend, sticking around even when the man disappears for a little while.
About the Illustrations
The cool, light colors in this book give it a gentle, spring-time feel. The man's affectionate looks at the cat beautifully portray the joy the animal brings to his life. By contrast, when the man seems to be missing, the cat's face and posture help emphasize the cat's feelings of uncertain sadness.
Story Time Possibilities
This is such a sweet story, not just about a man and his cat, but also about neighbors who step up to care for the cat during the man's apparent time of illness. It would be a great addition to a story time about pets, friendship, hats, or cats.
Readers Advisory
This book gave me strong Mr. Putter and Tabby vibes, but with a touch more sentimentality. No one dies in the book, but really sensitive kids might worry about that and get upset, so it's probably a good idea to be aware of that. I really like the way this book respects the dignity of older people and allows the man to return to his own home rather than taking the cliche route and relegating him to a nursing home. For that reason, I'm keeping it for our home library.
Disclosure
I received a finished review copy of Hat Cat in exchange for an honest review.
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