Synopses & Reviews
What simpler way could there be to express to children the beauty and the harmony in the world around them than through the lyrics of this song by George David Weiss and Bob Thiele, made famous by the great Louis Armstrong? And what better visual accompaniment than the bright colorful artwork by award-winning Ashley Bryan depicting children of many backgrounds (and Louis Armstrong himself) performing a puppet show that brings the lyrics to life. Here is a book of brightness, wonder, and hope to be shared by all.
About the Author
Ashley Bryan was born in New York City and now lives on a small island off the coast of Maine where he writes and illustrates books most of the year. A former teacher at Dartmouth College, he has compiled, written, and illustrated many books for Atheneum, mainly African folktales, such as the recent The Story of Lightning and Thunder and collections of spirituals, such as All Night, All Day: A Child's First Book of African-American Spirituals. His book Beat the Story Drum, Pum-Pum, received the Coretta Scott King Award for Illustration, and Lion and the Ostrich Chicks was a Coretta Scott King Honor Book. Ashley Bryan grew up to the sound of his mother singing from morning to night, and he has shared the joy of song with children ever since. A beloved illustrator, he has been the recipient of the Coretta Scott King-Virgina Hamilton Lifetime Achievement Award and the Laura Ingalls Wilder Award; he has also been a May Hill Arbuthnot lecturer, a Coretta Scott King Award winner, and the recipient of countless other awards and recognitions. He lives in Islesford, one of the Cranberry Isles off the coast of Maine, where he can often be found with a cluster of children, all singing.