Henry Van Dyke was a 19th century American educator, clergyman, and writer. After graduating from the Princeton Theological Seminary he became a professor of literature at Princeton. He later became the U S minister to the Netherlands. While ambassador to the Netherlands he played a major role in helping President Wilson keep the US out of World War I. Van Dyke wrote poetry, essays and hymns. He wrote the words to the hymn Joyful Joyful We Adore Thee. The nine stories in The Blue Flower are allegories. The characters all are searching for happiness and find spiritual lessons on their journey. Stories in this collection include The blue flower - The source -- The mill -- Spy rock -- Wood-magic -- The other wise men -- A handful of clay -- The lost word -- The first Christmas-tree.