(1) K-3 "One night...Otilla finally ran away." After trekking through the snowy forest, she knocks at the door of a large old house. A skull in the window says he'll let the girl in if she'll carry him: "Rolling around is difficult for me." "All right," Otilla agrees, and soon they are touring his home together. Otilla finds there's a lot she can do for the skull, who can no longer build a fire or make tea or reach the pears on the tree. (She kindly feeds him a bite of pear, which "went through him and fell onto the floor. 'Ah, delicious,' said the skull.") They dance together in the ballroom, and when the skull warns her of the headless skeleton that chases him every night, Otilla sets out to help her new friend, handily destroying the skeleton. In gratitude, the skull invites her to stay with him, and, of course, she accepts. Unflappable Otilla and the unfailingly polite skull make for odd but exemplary companions in this well-paced tale, told in five parts (with most split into three brief sections) and illustrated in classic, deadpan Klassen style with speckled art that's both mesmerizing and dryly hilarious. The dark tones of the art are warmed by slants of peach-hued winter sunlight; like the scary-funny story, darkness and light work in tandem surprisingly well. An author's note expands on the background of this folktale retelling.

Reviewer: Jennifer M. Brabander | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2023

(1) K-3 In this collection of five connected short stories, clocking in at over ninety pages and composed solely of dialogue, Klassen introduces readers to a turtle, an armadillo, and a snake--all in hats, of course. And because this is a deeply strange set of stories, there is also an alien creature and the book title's meteor. As with I Want My Hat Back (rev. 11/11), font colors are assigned to each character, providing clues as to who is speaking. The first story is all about a close call; the second, saving face; the third, a fantastical creature from the future (a gigantic eyeball on six towering legs that can shoot fire from its pupil); the fourth, a failed attempt to appreciate beauty; and the fifth, hurt feelings. Klassen masterfully builds suspense, particularly in the first story: readers know that a massive rock is falling from the sky, while characters continually change (precarious) position on the page. (No worries: no animals were harmed in the making of this book, though the same can't be said for an orange flower and, eventually, the alien visitor.) Throughout, Klassen's characteristically deadpan humor refuses to patronize readers; he lets them in on the joke, as always, by putting them one step ahead of the protagonists. Smart, funny, and offbeat, this is quintessential Klassen.

Reviewer: Julie Danielson | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2021

(1) K-3 Amidst a desert landscape, two turtles find a hat together, but "there is only one," so they leave it. Visually, the book is unmistakably Klassen's: monochromatic palette, dialogue/monologue text, and telltale eyes that telegraph what's really happening. The book's tenderness and uplifting ending is just as surprising as the black humor in I Want My Hat Back and This Is Not My Hat.

Reviewer: Jonathan Hunt | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2016

(1) K-3 A guilty-looking little fish has taken a tiny bowler from the head of a large sleeping fish. He explains why he won't be caught (the fish is asleep, he won't wake up or notice the missing hat, etc.), but every claim he makes is belied by the pictures. Telling almost the whole story through subtle movements, Klassen lets readers in on this darkly hilarious joke.

Reviewer: Robin L. Smith | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2012

(2) K-3 A bear has lost his red hat. He questions a fox, frog, rabbit, turtle, snake, and armadillo before giving up. "What's the matter?" asks Deer, knocking free a recent memory (something that young readers are sure to have noticed) and leading the bear to a red-hot conclusion. Klassen's animation and design skills are evident on every page of this sly, subversive tale.

Reviewer: Robin L. Smith | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2011