Charles Robinson was born in Islington, London in October 1870 and became a well renowned artist. His father Thomas as well as his older brother Thomas Heath and younger brother William Heath were illustrators and like them Charles became a book illustrator too.
The first book he fully illustrated was Robert Louis Stevenson’s A Childs Garden of Verses published in 1895. Throughout his career he illustrated a large number of fairy tales and other childrens books including Lullaby Land, Child Voices, Alice in Wonderland, Grimm’s Fairy Tales, The Secret Garden as well as those books he had written himself.
In later life he became an established watercolor painter and was elected to the Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours in 1932.
Charles Robinson Book Illustrations
The following books were illustrated by Charles Robinson and many of their full color illustrations can be found in Wall Art Made Easy: Ready to Frame Vintage Charles Robinson Prints Volumes 1 and 2.
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (1907) – written by English author Charles Lutwidge Dodgson under the pseudonym Lewis Carroll tells the story of Alice falling down a rabbit hole into Wonderland; having many adventures and meeting strange creatures there.
The Happy Prince and Other Tales (1920) – written by Oscar Wilde, “The Happy Prince” was his first published volume of prose fiction of fairy tales written for his sons. This book contains The Happy Prince, The Nightingale and the Rose, The Selfish Giant, The Devoted Friend and The Remarkable Rocket.
The Story of the Weathercock (1907) – written by Evelyn Sharp, tells the story of how a magical weathercock befriends a “backward” baby who cannot speak to grown ups and together they have many adventures. When at last the baby learns to speak it can no longer communicate with the weathercock. The fairy queen comes to the rescue and sends another baby to the weathercock.
Teddy’s Year with the Fairies (1920) – written by M E Gullick
Songs & Sonnets of Shakespeare (1915) – features the verses, songs and sonnets from Shakespeare’s dramatic plays.
The Big Book of Nursery Rhymes (1920) – edited by Walter Jerrold, this delightful book of 300 traditional verses including Baa Baa Black Sheep, Little Tom Tucker, Diddle Diddle Dumpling, Ding Dong Bell, Georgy Porgy and Polly Put the Kettle On.
The Sensitive Plant (1911) – poem by Percy Bysshe Shelley, a major English romantic poet.
Our Sentimental Garden (1914) – book by Agnes and Egerton Castle about the creation of a garden.
The Secret Garden (1911) – a novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett considered to be a classic in English children’s literature. Set in England, it is the story of how a sickly bad tempered young orphaned girl called Mary comes to live at her estranged Uncle’s home and learns of a secret garden. Intrigued, Mary sets off to find the garden and enters it only to find it in a very sorry state.
With the help of the friends she has gained Mary works to bring the garden back to life. And in doing so her own health in body and mind are rejuvenated and restored. Mary discovers Colin, her spoilt unloved bedridden cousin who has been crippled since birth shut up in the house. Mary takes Colin to the garden in his wheelchair. The rejuvenating effect that worked on Mary soon works on Colin and he learns to walk and his health becomes fully restored.
Colin’s father who is living abroad is sent for and he returns immediately completely unaware of his sons miraculous recovery. Heading straight to the garden he finds Colin who falls into his fathers arms and both are reconciled.
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