Escape from Hat

Gr 3-7–In this world, everyone has good and bad luck, courtesy of personal good-luck rabbits and bad-luck black cats that are rarely even noticed. Cecil Bean is no exception–until the day his black cat, Millikin, decides he’s had enough of Leek the good-luck rabbit and his interference. So Millikin hatches a plan to send Leek far away, deep into the land within a magician’s hat. Now both Cecil and Leek must do everything within their power to be reunited. Set partly in the sinister world of Hat and partly in an 1800s-esque reality where children use phrases like “cut of your jib” but also know what Chevy Corvairs are, this title is a little too clever for its own good. The writing has the feel of a Roald Dahl or James Thurber text, without the patina of years to explain its old-timey language and give it true classic status. And despite being short for a middle grade novel, much of the narration and dialogue seems better suited for an adult audience; only a particularly precocious younger reader would finish on their own.