Jon Klassen is the creator of the #1
New York Times bestselling
I Want My Hat Back, which received a Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor, and its companions,
This Is Not My Hat, which won a Caldecott Medal and a Kate Greenaway Medal, and
We Found a Hat, named a
Publishers Weekly Best Children’s Book of the Year. He is also the creator of the Your Places and Your Things board book series, as well as the picture books
The Rock from the Sky and
The Skull. He is the illustrator of
How Does Santa Go Down the Chimney?,
Extra Yarn,
Sam and Dave Dig a Hole, and the Shapes Trilogy, all by Mac Barnett. For his contributions to children’s literature, Jon Klassen is a member of the Order of Canada and was named the 2026 recipient of the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award. Originally from Niagara Falls, Ontario, Jon Klassen now lives in Los Angeles.
A marvelous book in the true dictionary sense of “marvel": it is a
wonderful and astonishing thing, the kind of book that makes child laugh and adult chuckle, and both smile in appreciation. A
charmingly wicked little book.
—The New York Times
Deliberately understated, with delectable results… Skillful characterizations; though they're simply drawn and have little to say,
each animal emerges fully realized.
—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
Read aloud, this story will offer many sublime insights into how young readers comprehend an illustrated text that leaves out vital information, and
will leave young sleuths reeling with theories about what just happened.
—School Library Journal
Klassen's animation and design skills are evident on every page in this sly, subversive tale... Adults and older children will chuckle mordantly at rabbit's sudden disappearance, while young children might actually wonder, with Squirrel, where the rabbit has gone.
—The Horn Book
Indubitably hip, this will find plenty of admirers.
—Kirkus Reviews
You know, bears may stand for adults in some way, because they’re big, they’re ungainly, they’re goofy. They’re like most of us grownups. But the bear in this book paws down; he’s got to be the dimmest, most slow-witted, brilliantly stupid bear to come along in years. I really love him.
—NPR Weekend Edition
Four pages into this charmer, every kindergartner will know where the bear’s missing hat is — but they’ll never predict the
hilarious revenge he takes on the thief.
—People Magazine
A sly picture book...
Young readers and listeners will love being in on the joke, making them appreciate the story's humor even more.
—BookPage
The joy of this book lies in figuring out the explicit plot from the implicit details in the pictures, especially a few wordless ones.
—Chicago Tribune
A coterie of woodland animals is drawn in a
minimalistic style and a palette of browns with a splash of red. The dialogue is simple and sly.
—The Boston Globe
This is a familiar picture-book formula with a twist, and the minimalist style Klassen employs with both text and art only emphasizes the humor of the situation....While these design choices and the simplicity and pattern of the text would make this a good choice for beginning readers, it would also make
an amusing readaloud or a great little readers’ theater piece.
—Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
Read
I Want My Hat Back by Jon Klassen. It’s the most subtle endorsement of murder you’ll ever find.
—GQ.com
This is
a must-have for any primary or even intermediate classroom. It’s about inference and being a good reader.
—Huffington Post
