Frank’s Red Hat

Gr 1-4–Frank is a penguin who lives in a cold and snowy spot, as penguins do. All he and his penguin friends ever see is the white of snow and the dark colors of the rocks. Visually, it is not an exciting spot, but Frank is a creative and inspired character who longs for more than just white and black. He has ideas, and some were great, but others make the penguins less keen on experimenting with Frank. One day he launches a sort of Red Hat campaign, but not everyone is willing to try it. Frank becomes a bit of an outcast after that, but he just keeps creating. Frank’s determination to continue even after the penguins give up on him sends a nice message of sticking with a dream despite bumps in the road. This humorous book is a joy to read. The wonderful absurdity of a hat-making penguin is brilliant. The illustrations focus on white and black, with occasional wildly colorful hats spread about the pages. The writing is strong and engaging. The final sentence is a great example of alliteration to share with kids: “Ideas that brought warmth and wonder to his winter white world.” Of special note is the CIP page linking the story with an Aboriginal tribe in Australia. This is a way of giving credit to Indigenous peoples around the world. Children may want to be aware of this practice and look for things that might be connected to this Australian tribe.