All Things Bright and Beautiful

All things bright and beautiful; all creatures great and small; all things wise and wonderful, the incredible Ashley Bryan illustrates them all!

Cecil Frances Humphreys Alexander (1818-1895) was an Irish hymn writer and poetess.  Born in Dublin, Ireland in the 1800’s, she first began writing verse when she was a little girl.  Mrs. Alexander would eventually write over 400 hymns and many poems.  The welfare of children was deeply important to her.  She donated the proceeds from her book Hymns for Little Children from which All Things Bright and Beautiful comes, to help build and maintain a school for children who were deaf or mute. In addition to All Things Bright and Beautiful Mrs. Alexander’s hymn There is a Green Hill Far Away and the Christmas carol Once in Royal David’s City are sung and celebrated all around the world. 

Ashley Bryan (1923–2022) grew up to the sound of his mother singing from morning to night, and he shared the joy of song with children. A beloved illustrator, he was named a Newbery Honoree for his picture book, Freedom Over Me. He also received the Coretta Scott King—Virginia Hamilton Lifetime Achievement Award, the Laura Ingalls Wilder Award, was a May Hill Arbuthnot lecturer, a Coretta Scott King Award winner, and the recipient of countless other awards and recognitions. His books include Freedom Over Me; Sail Away; Beautiful Blackbird; Beat the Story-Drum, Pum Pum; Let It Shine; Ashley Bryan’s Book of Puppets; and What a Wonderful World. He lived in Islesford, one of the Cranberry Isles off the coast of Maine.