THE PIGEON HAS TO GO TO SCHOOL!

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, 2020 Audies Winner © AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine [Published: DECEMBER 2019]