Tarot Mystery Theater: 'The Reason the Singing Hat Lost Its Voice'

Blackwood, the owner of the secondhand bookstore, is a master detective

Read-aloud mystery: 'The Reason the Singing Hat Lost Its Voice'

A cloudy morning in London.
A breathless gentleman burst into the secondhand bookstore, 'Blackwood’s Books'.

'Mr. Blackwood! T-terrible news!'

Clutched to his chest was a strange top hat.
It was no ordinary hat.

——It sings.

According to the gentleman, whenever he wore this hat at evening parties, it would sing arias in a beautiful voice.
But last night, the voice suddenly vanished, and the hat became nothing more than a piece of cloth.

'This must be a theft! Please find the culprit who stole the hat’s “voice”!'

The owner of the bookstore, Elias Blackwood nodded quietly.
'Hmm... then, let us ask the hat itself.'

What the Tarot reveals

Placing the hat on his desk, Elias drew a single Tarot card.
What appeared was the 'Star'.

'The Star signifies longing, and also “guidance.”
In other words, the hat’s voice was not stolen... it aimed for the sky.'

'The sky...?' the gentleman was bewildered.

Elias nodded, gently stroking the hat as he spoke.
'Every time this hat sang, it must have been looking up at the night sky.
It surely wished to deliver its song to the stars someday.'

A fantastical conclusion

That night.
As the gentleman and Elias looked up at the night sky, a single shooting star streaked across it.

At that moment, the faint aria of the hat mingled with the wind and echoed through the sky.

“...Could it be that the hat's voice became a shooting star?”
The gentleman gasped.

Elias smiled.
“Indeed. From now on, whenever a star falls, you should listen closely.
That singing voice will continue to dwell in the sky.”

◆ Epilogue

From that day on, the people of the town began to listen closely whenever they looked up at the night sky.
When a shooting star streaks by, a faint singing voice truly does reach them, mingled with the wind.

The singing hat no longer sings.
But its singing voice longed for the sky, and eventually became a part of the stars.

—And so, the detective of the secondhand bookstore is quietly organizing his bookshelves again today.

After reading this aloud, I would be happy if you had the children draw a picture of the 'Singing Hat'.
And while looking at those pictures, it would be a pleasure if parents and children talked about what happened after this mystery?

Avec Toi

Song: 'The Reason the Singing Hat's Voice Vanished'

The hat's song echoes at the evening party
The melody of the aria dances fluttering by

But one night the voice vanished
And it became just a piece of cloth

Turn the tarot, the Star card appears
The hat longed for it and looked at the sky

A single shooting star streaks through the night
And the song has come to dwell among the stars