The Pigeon Wants a Puppy! by Mo Willems

1. Bibliography

Willems, M. (2008). The Pigeon Wants a Puppy! Hyperion Books for Children. ISBN 978-142310960-0

2. Plot Summary

In The Pigeon Wants a Puppy!, the Pigeon “talks” with the reader about his new found desire to get a pet puppy. The Pigeon goes through a wide range of emotions trying to convince the reader that he is ready for dog ownership before ultimately realizing that he’s not sure a dog is the right fit for him. But maybe a walrus would be a better fit…

3. Critical Analysis

Mo Willems is the author and illustrator of The Pigeon Wants a Puppy! The Pigeon is a featured character in a series of books. This story is simple and straightforward while still being engaging to all readers. The Pigeon is the only character in this story but he talks and interacts with the reader of the book which makes it engaging for children (and the grown up who may be reading with them). Willems style is minimalistic but still interesting and captivating. There aren’t backgrounds in the pages but each page is a different brightly colored backdrop to the Pigeon. The style that Willems illustrates the pigeon and any other pictures in the story is again simplistic, but it in a way that puts the focus on the Pigeon’s feelings and expressions. This keeps the story fast paced but engaging. The only text is the Pigeon’s speech bubbles. But all of this lends itself to telling an immersive story. You feel, as the reader, you are interacting with the Pigeon. The one sided nature of the text easily encourages a child’s response to the Pigeons many questions, pleas, and persuasions. 

In The Pigeon Wants a Puppy!, the Pigeon goes through a wide array of emotions in trying to convince the reader that he is ready to get a puppy. His mercurial moods and over the top reactions are enjoyable to read. The Pigeon has a child-like sense of longing for a puppy and the reader plays the part of the more sensible “character” of the story. By the end of the story, the Pigeon has come to his own conclusion that the puppy isn’t the right pet for him, allowing the reader to laugh and imagine what hijinks he will get into as he embarks on his next pet adventure. 

4. Review Excerpts

• Kirkus Reviews- “Even though the pigeon may get more than he bargained for, his many fans will find they get exactly what they’ve come to expect: lots of giggles.”

• School Library Journal- “Kids will love this perfectly paced picture book, which offers both the expected (breaking the fourth wall, Pigeon's classic temper tantrum) and a new twist (Pigeon actually gets what he wants? Impossible!).”

5. Connections

• This is the 4th book in the Pigeon book series by Mo Willems. The first was Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus.

• Class discussions-What pet would you want to get? What is a good pet to have? Why? What wouldn’t be a good pet to have? Why not?

• Class activities-Students could create pictures or write sentences predicting what they think will happen before they read the book (will the pigeon get the puppy, etc? They could make another prediction for what they think will happen after they read the story (does the Pigeon actually get the walrus, etc).