Maker of Heaven and Earth
Posted on 02. Dec, 2009 by Jeff Lambert in Reading
While I was looking up the poem that I know as “All Things Bright and Beautiful” but, in actuality, is titled “Maker of Heaven and Earth”, I found that there were more than just the four lines I know from my readings of the wonderful novels by James Herriot, whose real name is James Alfred Wight (1916-1995). There actually are 24 additional lines to the poem, written by Cecil Frances Alexander (1818-1895). The full poem, along with biographical and other information about Cecil Francis Alexander, can be found on poemhunter.com.
As for the four James Herriot novels I’m familiar with, each were named based upon the first four lines from the beginning of this poem. If you have never read these books, you really must. They are truly wonderful. In fact, they were so popular that a BBC series was created based upon them. The books follow the real life stories of James “Herriot”, a country veterinarian in England, as he began his practice, was interrupted by World War II, got married, had children…. They are full of humor and emotions and are captivating. I read the books as a teenager and, more recently, I read a newer children’s book, James Herriot’s Treasury for Children, to my children. The original novels are written chronologically through this vet’s life and don’t follow the poem’s order, so, here is the order in which to read them:
All Creatures Great and Small
All Things Bright and Beautiful
All Things Wise and Wonderful
The Lord God Made Them All
note: each of the above lines (and images below) are an affiliate link to the book by the same name
About the authorEntrepreneur Jeff Lambert is the President and founder of JVHM, Inc., a software development business located in the San Francisco Bay Area but serving clients around the globe. Jeff's expertise includes application development, database design, integration and development, website design and development, blogging integration, video production, CRM systems setup, development and support and more. In his "spare" time Jeff likes to hang out with his family, run and expand his talents, abilities and understanding of the world around him.
