JOHN HENRY by Julius Lester, Ill. by Jerry Pinkney

Bibliography
Lester, Julius. 1994. John Henry. Ill. by Jerry Pinkney. New York: Dial Books. ISBN 0803716060

Plot Summary
This book is a version of the African American folktale that has been told and sung for generations. John Henry is a gentle giant born from ordinary parents. He is strong and fast. He wins a wager against the meanest man in town, finishes building a road smack through a boulder, and hammers faster than a steam drill straight through a mountain during the building of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad through West Virginia.

Critical Analysis
John Henry is an African American folktale so well known within the culture, that when my husband saw the book, he automatically recited, “John Henry was a steel driving man.” The illustrations play an important part in this story. John Henry is known for building the railroad. The illustrations set the time frame for this. It is immediately established that this story takes place in the West. The text confirms this later in the story, that it takes place somewhere around West Virginia. These are the days of the Old West, the Wild West.

The entire story is culturally authentic to African Americans just because it is a folktale specific to this culture. The text remains true to the story, and the illustrations bring it to life. Like every child imagines, John Henry is big, strong, and kind-hearted. He enjoys his work and using his strength to help others. His labor is hard and manual, so he sings to keep his spirits up and to make his work go quickly. This singing while working comes from days of slavery and is preserved in this story. The clothes worn by the people are those donned by the working class. They are the dusty and well-worn apparel commonly known to be worn in the Wild West. A time where people had to work from dawn to dusk just to survive.

I like this story not only for the illustrations but also because of the message given in the text. “Dying ain’t important. Everybody does that. What matters is how well you do your living.” The tale can be told in poetry or ballad form, and this is what I found myself missing. Ballad or poetry form always instantly grabs children’s interest as well.

Awards Won & Review Excerpts

• Aesop Prize, 1994
• Randolph Caldecott Medal, 1995 - Honor Book
• Booklist: "Pinkney's dappled pencil-and-watercolor illustrations capture the individuality of the great working man, who is part of the human community and who has the strength of rock and wind."
• Cooperative Children's Book Center Choices: "Julius Lester's uses of anthropomorphism and anachronism mark the story with his own distinctive flair as a skillful storyteller for contemporary children."

Connections

• There are many versions of John Henry and speculation of whether he was a real man. This website provides more information about this: http://www.ibiblio.org/john_henry/.
• Try reading more African American folk tales:
  Hamilton, Virginia. The People Could Fly: The Picture Book. ISBN 9780394869254
  Hamilton, Virginia. When Birds Could Talk & Bats Could Sing: The Adventures of Bruh Sparrow, Sis Wren, and Their Friends. ISBN 0590473727
  McGill, Alice. Way Up and Over Everything. ISBN 061838796X
  San Souci, Robert D. The Hired Hand: An African-American Folktale. ISBN 0803712960
• Other books by Julius Lester:
  Black Cowboy, Wild Horses: A True Story. ISBN 0803717873
  Let's Talk About Race. ISBN 0060285982
  Sam and the Tigers: A New Telling of Little Black Sambo. ISBN 0803720289
  The Tales of Uncle Remus: The Adventures of Brer Rabbit. ISBN 9780803702721