Paul Brett Johnson is a renowned artist and author of children's books. He was born May 19, 1947, in Mousie, Kentucky, the son of Harriet and Paul Johnson.
As early as he can remember, his passion has been art and his source of inspiration has remained rooted in the hills and valleys of Knott County -the people he has known and the scenes and experiences of his growing-up days. His very first moneymaking endeavor was painting campaign signs on oilcloth for Archie Everage for county clerk. His earliest labor of love was the creation of a mountain scene for the baptistery at the Ganey Baptist Church pioneered by his grandparents, Jeanette and Commodore Slone. He received a degree in art from the University of Kentucky where his professors favored abstract styles and subject matter that were in opposition to his own instincts and his mountain heritage. Fortunately he realized early on that his artistic abilities could best be reflected in the faces and places which belonged in his own world -a hog killing by his Uncle Ancil Campbell with the help of Kendall and Bessie Bolen, Alpha Sturgill in her sunbonnet peeling apples, Eliza Campbell's baptism in the creek behind the Old Regular Baptist Church, and coal miners with rugged faces, dinner pails, and carbide lights. His most widely known and best loved landscape paintings all reflect the passing seasons in the hills and hollows of home. As artist and author, Paul Brett has received numerous honors and awards. He is a two-time recipient of the Kentucky Bluegrass Award, and has received the California Young Readers' Medal, the North Carolina. Junior Book Award, and the Story Telling World Honor Book Award. He is listed in the Library Journal, and in New York Public Library's "100 Titles for Reading and Sharing." He has been recognized in the Smithsonian magazine's "Best Books for Children." He was named a Kentucky Heritage Artist and is listed in Who's Who in America.
    Paul Brett currently makes numerous visits to schools and libraries throughout the United States where he conducts seminars and workshops in the art of writing, illustrating, and publishing. At each appearance he proudly introduces himself as being a native son of Mousie, Kentucky, and stresses that his richest source of materials comes from his home background in Knott County. He gives special credit to his Grandpa Commodore Slone, whom he recalls as a grand storyteller of doubtful tales whose philosophy was," Never let the truth get in the way of a good story."
    Although Paul Brett has lived in Lexington for many years he has never truly left Knott County. Each year he makes several visits back home to schools, libraries, and workshops. His official autobiography as submitted to his various publishers concludes with the following statement:" Today when I work, I often go back to the creek banks of my youth -if not physically, then in my mind. There I draw on a reservoir of memories, emotions, and lessons learned. In that sense, a little bit of Mousie, Kentucky finds its way into each new book."