Ayin Hillel was born in 1926 in the Jezreel Valley of Israel. He fought in the elite Palmach during Israel’s 1948 War of Independence and worked as Jerusalem’s chief landscape architect from 1954-1969, designing the city’s botanical and biblical gardens. A poet and beloved children’s book author, Hillel’s published works span forty years. He was awarded the Fichman Prize and an Andersen Honor Citation in 1976. He died in 1990.