Jerry Pinkney, an award winning illustrator, died from a heart attack on October 20, 2021. He was 81 years old. His version of Aesop's fable, The Lion & the Mouse, won a Caldecott award in 2009. Pinkney's books won several Coretta Scott King Awards and a Boston Globe Horn Book award. Pinkney also won multiple life time achievement awards, including the Coretta Scott King Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement in 2016. This award honors African-American illustrators and writers who have had a significant impact on children's literature. In 2016, Pinkney also won a Children's Literature Legacy Award for his contribution to the genre.
Jerry Pinkney worked primarily in watercolor and pencil. His illustrations are full of details, and often center Black children. From fables and folk tales to biographies, Pinkney's life work appeals to wide age range. Check out one of his books and celebrate the life and career of this amazing Black illustrator.
In honor of Jerry Pinkney-- Multi-award winning author and illustrator of Children's books that celebrate the Afrocentric perspective: December 22, 1939 - October 20, 2021.
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