Jerry Pinkney’s marvelous watercolor and graphite paintings capture distinctive traits of each featured animal in a new edition of this classic story. The rat is convincingly ratlike, the dog convincingly doglike . . . and the pig wallowing in his mudbath is a glorious sight to behold. Yet each creature’s face is tempered with expressiveness that makes the animals’ dialogue and interactions convincing. The narrative also suggests a distinguishing trait for each creature as the hen offers up arguments for assistance. (Rat, for example, will surely help her cut the wheat as “You can use your tail to chop it easily.”) In the text, the animals always appear in typeface the same color as their description (e.g., “little red hen” is in red type). Paints, brushes, and a picture of a little red hen can be spied behind the African American miller who grinds the wheat—one more pleasing, teasing element (it’s Pinkney himself) in this volume. (Ages 3–6)