Booklist, reviewing The Pigeon Finds a Hot Dog!, wrote "Once again, Willems uses artistic minimalism (each page shows only the birds and the hot dog, rendered in basic lines) and spare, hilarious dialogue to convey surprisingly realistic emotions.

"[1] and the School Library Journal wrote "Children, especially those with younger siblings, will have come up with this obvious solution long before the pigeon does.

Willems's deceptively simple cartoon drawings convincingly portray his protagonist's emotional dilemma, from his initial joy to his frustration and struggle over what he wants to do versus what he knows is right.

"[1] The Horn Book Magazine's review noted "Cartoonist Willems is as adept at depicting the daily dramas in a child's life as he is in using subtle changes in line to convey shifting emotions.

The book's clean, minimalist design lets the duckling/pigeon performance take center stage, and the dialogue between the two is played for maximum laughs.