Neville’s Great Escape
by Sean E. Avery
Walker Books, 2026. 32 pages.
Review written February 20, 2026, from a library book.
Starred Review
Neville’s Great Escape is a follow-up to Frank’s Red Hat, which is about a penguin who is different than other penguins because he starts wearing a red hat.
I think the main reason I never reviewed Frank’s Red Hat when it came out was that the image on the page that showed what happened when Neville tried the red hat was simply too terrifying. I couldn’t laugh my way past it. Poor Neville!
Well, that image from Frank’s Red Hat is exactly the image on the cover of Neville’s Great Escape – a giant killer whale looming over Neville, about to swallow him whole.
Hooray! Neville escapes! It’s right in the title! Now I can feel free to love both books.
So – this picture book is the story of how the penguin Neville escapes from the inside of a whale’s mouth.
His method is implausible and silly, involving lots of inexplicable furniture – but it’s also a lot of fun. Neville lives!
And he’s not eaten yet.
Find this review on Sonderbooks at: www.sonderbooks.com/Picture_Books/nevilles_great_escape.html
Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.
Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but the views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.
Subscribe for more reviews and talk about books.
Join the conversation: What did you think of this book?