In The Hat Diaries: The Secret Life of Ryan Rigbee, award-winning children’s book author Nadine Haruni introduces older readers — middle-grade and up — to a 13-year-old boy with a very active dream life.
By day, Ryan Rigbee is the kid with the shaggy hair who sits alone at the lunch table in his small town of Sunken Valley. Though his mom says he shouldn’t take it to heart, it hurts when bullies at school call him a “weirdo” and “dork.” But that’s nothing compared to the pain of losing his dad to cancer. By night, Ryan is different. From his bedroom, he goes on adventures, transformed from an awkward tween to a grown man who can handle just about anything. To make this magic happen, all he needs to do is put on a hat.
It’s been nearly a year since his dad died, but Ryan still misses him. Happily, his mom has started smiling again since going to work as the office manager for Harry’s Haberdashery. His mom’s job at the hat factory has also made life better for Ryan —thanks to Merlo, an ancient-looking dude who’s been with Harry’s for a long time.
According to Merlo, the hat factory is “magical for the lucky few.” Ryan sure must be lucky. Harry’s makes hats of all types — hats worn by firefighters, police officers, magicians, airplane pilots, baseball players and more. Each afternoon, Merlo lets Ryan take a different hat home. Each night, Ryan wears that hat to bed and is whisked off on an adrenaline-rushing adventure, where he is thrust into various roles. He writes about his adventure in his diary but doesn’t tell anyone, not even Merlo.
Are his exciting “Hat Adventures” just dreams? To Ryan, they feel so real. And even though they take him to faraway places (including an ashram in India and a safari in Kenya) and into heart-pounding situations, they often seem strangely familiar. In the adventures, sometimes he meets a woman who resembles his mom. Sometimes he encounters a boy who looks just like he did when he was little — his doppelgänger. In every adventure, Ryan is thrilled to be reunited with Shadow, the adorable dog mom said they couldn’t take home from the kennel — but in the adventures, people sometimes call him Champ or Bud. And in one of his most exciting adventures, Ryan finds himself playing in the World Series for the SkyFlys, under the guidance of the team manager who reminds him of his dad.
During the course of these adventures, Ryan finds many striking coincidences and clues that lead to startling discoveries about his mom, his dad, his mentor Merlo and himself. While wearing different hats at night, Ryan develops the courage to brave all kinds of challenges, which gradually gives him the confidence to handle bullies at school and even consider asking out his crush, Violet.
An imaginative, action-packed story that follows a relatable tween as he struggles with loss, grief, bullying, loneliness and regret, The Hat Diaries marks the start of a coming-of-age fantasy trilogy that will resonate with many young readers and keep them rooting for Ryan Rigbee.
About the Author
Nadine Haruni is the author of The Hat Diaries middle-grade fantasy series and the Freeda the Frog children’s books. The Hat Diaries: The Secret Life of Ryan Rigbee is the first book in The Hat Diaries trilogy. The Hat Diaries collection is written for teens and adults, expanding readers’ imaginations as they enter Ryan’s secret world. The Freeda the Frog books focus on acceptance for every type of family and serve to comfort children as they experience real-life situations. Haruni frequently does author events, radio and TV interviews, and podcasts. She is also a practicing attorney and certified yoga instructor, and the proud mother of a blended family of five children.
For more information about the author, please visit https://www.nadineharuni.com/.
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