The Horn Book Guide

PRESCHOOL

Willems, Mo

The Pigeon HAS to Go to School!

40 pp. | Hyperion | July, 2019 | Trade ISBN 978-1-368-04645-9 $16.99

(2) PS Willems's pugnacious pigeon is unsurprisingly unexcited about starting school. In direct-address text, the pigeon imagines worst-case scenarios, from the ridiculous ("What if I learn too much!?! My head might pop off") to the realistic ("What will the other birds think of me?"). Many children facing this milestone will relate to the pigeon's apprehension, though his histrionics are clearly demonstrated as such in both over-the-top text and restrained-until-they're-not illustrations.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2019