The Hat Diaries (TM)

The Secret Life of Ryan Rigbee

Young Adult - Fantasy - General
252 Pages
Reviewed on 05/09/2024
Buy on Amazon

This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Free Book Program, which is open to all readers and is completely free. The author will provide you with a free copy of their book in exchange for an honest review. You and the author will discuss what sites you will post your review to and what kind of copy of the book you would like to receive (eBook, PDF, Word, paperback, etc.). To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email.

This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Review Exchange Program, which is open to all authors and is completely free. Simply put, you agree to provide an honest review an author's book in exchange for the author doing the same for you. What sites your reviews are posted on (B&N, Amazon, etc.) and whether you send digital (eBook, PDF, Word, etc.) or hard copies of your books to each other for review is up to you. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email, and be sure to describe your book or include a link to your Readers' Favorite review page or Amazon page.

This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Donation Program, which was created to help nonprofit and charitable organizations (schools, libraries, convalescent homes, soldier donation programs, etc.) by providing them with free books and to help authors garner more exposure for their work. This author is willing to donate free copies of their book in exchange for reviews (if circumstances allow) and the knowledge that their book is being read and enjoyed. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email. Be sure to tell the author who you are, what organization you are with, how many books you need, how they will be used, and the number of reviews, if any, you would be able to provide.

    Book Review

Reviewed by Anne-Marie Reynolds for Readers' Favorite

The Hat Diaries by Nadine Haruni is the story of The Secret Life of Ryan Rigbee. There’s nothing special about Ryan Rigbee, at least not during the day. He’s just a 13-year-old who has lost his dad and puts up with being bullied. But at night, everything changes. With a series of magical hats, Ryan and his dog are taken on a bunch of hair-raising adventures – at least, that is what he writes about in his diaries. Those diaries turn him into a confident person who would never be bullied. On his adventures, Ryan has a mentor, Merlo, who helps him decipher clues that lead to amazing discoveries. Together with Shadow, his beloved dog, Ryan learns to live and enjoy life, becoming the one thing he isn’t in his real life – a person in his own right.

The Hat Diaries by Nadine Haruni is the first book in a fantasy trilogy, and it has a unique plot with plenty of action. I am a wee bit older than the audience this book is aimed at, but I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. It has plenty of adventure, each chapter taking you somewhere different. The style of writing draws you in, immersing you completely in the storyline, and is told partly as the main character’s inner voice. This is an easy book to follow and will take you to worlds you never dreamed existed. The characters are wonderfully well-developed, and there are lots of twists and turns in the plot. There are also a few life lessons to learn about love, loss, and friendship, and the main character’s humor shines through. This is a fun read, and I can’t wait to read the next one.