The Wind in the Willows. By Kenneth Grahame, illustrations by Ernest Shepard. First on Pinkney's list. "A book that still convinces me that animals talk to each other."

Rain Makes Applesauce. By Julian Scheer, illustrations by Marvin Bileck. Fantasy and nonsense in free verse -- the stars are made of lemon juice and rain makes applesauce. The subtle pencil illustrations and delicate blending of color strongly influenced Pinkney.

I Saw A Ship A Sailing: Mother Goose Rhymes. Illustrated by Benny Montresor. Montresor's book, which features elaborate five color overlay illustrations, was published at a time when most children's books were produced in no more than three colors. The book "opened up the possibility of working in unlimited color," says Pinkney. "It humbles me."

Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters. Written & illustrated by John Steptoe. A fairy tale about two beautiful African-American girls, one kind, the other mean. Pinkney included it as an acknowledgment of both the beauty of the book and the importance of works that reflect his own cultural background.

The True Story of the Three Little Pigs Retold by Jon Scieszka, illustrations by Lane Smith. "Nobody knows the real story of the three little pigs, they've got it all wrong," begins this hip, revisionist version of the story we all grew up with, written in the same spirit as Pinkney's re-telling of stories from his childhood.

Where the Wild Things Are. Written & illustrated by Maurice Sendak. "A wonderful story about confronting the fears of childhood. Sendak created magic with both his words and illustrations." Pinkney said he included this classic both on merit and because of the prestige it helped give to the field of children's books.