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From Publisher's Weekly

June 24, 2019
At long last, the school bell tolls for Pigeon, despite his insistence that "I already know EVERYTHING!" But as longtime readers of Willems's series know, there's a little bird beneath all that bluster, and Pigeon soon reveals that school has turned him into a feather-covered bundle of anxieties. "What if the teacher doesn't like pigeons?" he asks, his normally robust black pupil shrinking to a little dot of fear. As he thinks about learning math and the alphabet, wearing a hefty backpack, and meeting other birds, the strong black outlines that have always defined Willems's beloved, kvetching protagonist turn ragged: "The unknown stresses me out, dude," he confides. But wait-is that a school bus he gets to ride on? "Coming through!" he shouts. "The Pigeon HAS to go to school!" Ages 3—5.

From AudioFile Magazine

A winning combination here--Mo Willems narrates the latest installment in his Pigeon books, and a musical score enriches the experience. The plot is spot-on for children facing the prospect of starting school. Meet Pigeon who, in his own estimation, doesn't need to go to school because he knows EVERYTHING. But when he's peppered with questions by kid voices, he becomes contrite, and then fearful. Once his creative juices start to flow, Pigeon rethinks the situation and see the potential joys of learning. The elasticity and range of Willems's voice bring pep to the production--mirroring the emotions of the text. The music does the same thing--adding punch to each emotion and separating each phase of Pigeon's experiences. Having the book, with its illustrations, in hand will add to the listening pleasure. A.R. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine