Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! - Softcover

Mo Willems

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1844285138 ISBN 13: 9781844285136

Publisher: Scholastic, Inc., 2004

Synopsis

Mo Willems, the winner of three Caldecott Honors and two Theodore Seuss Geisel Awards, is the creator of the books in this outstanding collection of bestsellers. These inventive and humorous stories star an unforgettable cast of characters: a demanding pigeon and a pair of unlikely friends. In his Pigeon books, a city bird won't take "no" for an answer—whether he wants to drive a bus or stay up past his bedtime. In the Elephant and Piggie series, two lovable and funny friends—an optimistic (and often reckless) pig and a cautious, pessimistic elephant support each other when they are sad or dealing with pesky birds. The cartoon-style illustrations perfectly capture the hilarious but heartfelt action in every story. It's no wonder these books have won the hearts of kids around the country!

About this title

Review

Amazon Exclusive: The Pigeon: A Life in Pictures
(Click on images to enlarge)

Back in 1993, I was cartooning for a ’zine. Due to a lack of other material, we decided to make the December issue a sketchbook with just my cartoons. I have been producing small cartoon and story sketchbooks for clients and pals every year since then.	In 1998, my sketchbook featured a new character, the Pigeon. Born in the margins of a 1997 notebook filled with potential picture book ideas, he was complaining that his ideas were better than mine. To mollify him, I put him in that year’s sketchbook.	The original sketchbook was much longer than the final published volume, but some of the lines were the same.
In late 1999, an agent essentially agreed with the Pigeon and rejected my picture book ideas. She suggested I revisit my sketchbook with an eye to turning it into a picture book. My wife was working at a school library at the time and had read the sketchbook to her kids, who had enjoyed it. So I suppose it wasn’t too crazy an idea. I started to revise the layout and work with color.	At the end of 2001, after several dozen rejections because the book was “unusual,” an editor decided that “unusual” was a good thing. Plus, it made her laugh. I began reworking and rewriting. The Pigeon was now starting to look more like his mature self.	Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! was published in April 2003 and, to my surprise, proved to be popular quite quickly. Thankfully, that Pigeon doodle in the notebook back in 1997 was so insistent. He was right!

About the Author

Mo Willems is a three-time Caldecott Honor winner for Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!, Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale and Knuffle Bunny Too: A Case of Mistaken Identity. His celebrated Elephant & Piggie early-reader series has been awarded the Theodor Seuss Geisel Medal on two occasions as well as three Honors. Other favourites include Goldilocks and the Three Dinosaurs and That Is Not a Good Idea. Before he turned to children's books, Mo was a writer and animator on Sesame Street, where he won six Emmy Awards. Mo lives with his family in Paris, France. Find him online at www.mowillems.com and on twitter as @The_Pigeon.

Edition details

• Publisher: Scholastic, Inc.
• Publication date: 2004
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1844285138
• ISBN 13: 9781844285136
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 40