Jerry Pinkney was an American illustrator and writer of children's literature. Pinkney illustrated over 100 books since 1964, including picture books, nonfiction titles and novels. Pinkney's works addressed diverse themes and were usually done in watercolors.
The Lion & the Mouse is a 2009 nearly wordless picture book illustrated by Jerry Pinkney. The book, published by Little, Brown and Company, tells Aesop's fable of The Lion and the Mouse. In the story, a mouse's life is a spared by a lion. Later, after the lion is trapped, the mouse is able to set the lion free. Adapting the fable, with the moral that the weak can help the strong, as a wordless picture book was seen as a successful way of overcoming the brief plot generally found in the source stories. While it was Pinkney's first wordless picture book, it was not the first time he had told the story, having previously included it in his Aesop's Fables, published in 2000. Pinkney, who had received five Caldecott Honors, became the first African American to win the Caldecott Medal for his illustrations in the book. His illustrations were generally praised for their realism and sense of place. The cover illustrations, featuring the title characters but no text, drew particular praise.
Rabbit Makes a Monkey of Lion: A Swahili Tale is a 1989 children's picture book by Verna Aardema and illustrated by Jerry Pinkney. It is an adaption of a Swahili folktale and is about Rabbit tricking Lion over a calabash tree.
The Man Who Kept His Heart in a Bucket is a 1991 children's picture book by Sonia Levitin and illustrator Jerry Pinkney. Released in 1991 by Dial Press, it is about a young man, Jack, who due to bitter experience keeps his heart in a bucket but then loses it.
Back Home is a 1992 children's picture book by Gloria Jean Pinkney and illustrator Jerry Pinkney. Published in 1992 by Dial Press, it is about a young girl, Ernestine, who, with her family, visits the place she was born.
The Sunday Outing is a 1994 children's picture book by Gloria Jean Pinkney and illustrated by Jerry Pinkney. Published by Dial Press in 1994, it is a prequel to Back Home, and is about a young girl, Ernestine, who makes sacrifices so she can afford a train trip.
Minty: A Story of Young Harriet Tubman is a 1996 children's picture book by Alan Schroeder and is illustrated by Jerry Pinkney. Released in 1996 by Dial Press, it is a fictionalized story of Harriet Tubman as a young girl.
Black Cowboy, Wild Horses: A True Story is a 1998 children's picture book by Julius Lester and illustrator Jerry Pinkney. It is about an ex-slave and cowboy, Bob Lemmons, who, by himself, wrangles a herd of wild horses to a corral.
Journeys with Elijah: Eight Tales of the Prophet is a 1999 children's picture book by Barbara Diamond Goldin and illustrated by Jerry Pinkney. It is based on the tradition that the biblical prophet Elijah can reappear to anyone anywhere at any time and is eight stories of people's encounters with him from ancient times to the modern day throughout the world.
Aesop's Fables is a 2000 collection of 61 fables from the Aesop oeuvre, retold by Jerry Pinkney. It includes stories about wolves, foxes, lions, dogs, mice, and donkeys.
The Little Red Hen is a 2006 book by Jerry Pinkney of the classic folktale about a chicken and some animals that decline to assist her in the growing and harvesting of wheat which she then uses to bake bread. When the animals ask to have some, she refuses and instead eats the bread with her chicks.
New Shoes for Silvia is a 1993 Children's picture book by Johanna Hurwitz and illustrator Jerry Pinkney. It is about a girl, Silvia, who receives a present of a pair of red shoes that are too large for her, and what she does with them until many months later when they finally fit her.
The All-I'll-Ever-Want Christmas Doll is a 2007 picture book by Patricia McKissack and illustrated by Jerry Pinkney. It is about a girl, Nella, living during the Great Depression who amazingly receives a doll for Christmas, initially doesn't share with her sisters but then relents after discovering that it's not fun to play by herself.
Puss in Boots is a 2012 picture book of the classic fairy tale by Jerry Pinkney. Based on Charles Perrault's version, it is about a cat that enables his owner to achieve fame and fortune.
The Christmas Boot is a 2016 picture book by Lisa Wheeler and illustrator Jerry Pinkney. It is about a woman, Hannah Greyweather, who finds a single black boot, that turns out to be owned by Santa.
Rikki-Tikki-Tavi is a 1997 retelling of Rudyard Kipling's classic story by Jerry Pinkney about a mongoose that protects a family from two cobras. The book won a Caldecott honor in 1998 for its illustrations.
Turtle in July is a 1989 children's picture book by Marilyn Singer and it is illustrated by Jerry Pinkney. It comprises a collection of animal poems and what they each experience during various times of the year.
Bruh Rabbit and the Tar Baby Girl is a 2003 picture book by Virginia Hamilton and illustrated by James Ransome. It is a retelling by Hamilton, in the Gullah dialect, of the classic story of Bruh Rabbit outwitting Bruh Wolf.
Cool Cat is a 2009 Children's picture book by Nonny Hogrogian. In this wordless book, a cat is joined by other animals to colourfully paint a ruined brown landscape.
The White Cat and the Monk: A Retelling of the Poem "Pangur Bán" is a 2016 children's picture book by Jo Ellen Bogart and illustrated by Sydney Smith. An adaption of an anonymous ninth century poem, it is about the friendship between Pangur, a cat and a monk, told over the course of one night, and the fulfillment they both receive by morning.
