Common Sense Media Review
By Mary Eisenhart
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Clever epic of heroic rabbits vs. evil black cats.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 8+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
What's the Story?
You may not know this, but every human has his own black cat and lucky rabbit working behind the scenes -- the cat to cause as much bad luck as possible, the rabbit to make everything turn out great. Faithful Leek the rabbit has his work cut out for him to protect his boy, Cecil Bean, from the endless mayhem of Millikin the cat. Then one day, thanks to the cat's sinister schemes, he falls through a magician's hat into the world of Hat itself, where the sun never shines, and where he soon finds many other rabbits who've met a similar fate. He's determined to make his ESCAPE FROM HAT and get back to Cecil, even when wiser rabbits tell him it can't be done. He sets off on this difficult quest, accompanied by Morel, brave warrior princess of the rabbits. Meanwhile, Cecil undertakes his own expedition to get his rabbit back.
Is It Any Good?
Author Adam Kline's funny, fast-moving story and imaginative characters engage young kids, their parents, and their older sibs, with grand adventures and frequent laugh-out-loud moments. Scottish artist Brian Taylor's gorgeous, anime-like full-color illustrations and cute pen-and-ink drawings are fun to explore, adding another dimension to the story.
An especially good choice for kids who aren't ready to deal with real villains and monsters, Escape From Hat gives them good tools for handling future scary stuff, since some bad guys are comically inept while others turn out not to be so bad after all.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about why the rabbits' luck changes for the better just when they seem most doomed. How does Cecil make his own magic from scratch?
What other magical adventure stories do you like? How does Escape From Hat compare with them? Does it make a difference that many of the characters aren't human?
Why do you think stories about being trapped in another world and trying to get home are so popular?
Book Details
- Author :
- Illustrator : Brian Taylor
- Genre : Fantasy
- Topics : Adventures , Animals , Fantasy ( Magic ) , Friendship
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : ZOVA Books
- Publication date : September 4, 2012
- Number of pages : 200
- Available on : Nook, Hardback, Kindle
- Last updated : December 3, 2025
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