James Hurst

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James Robert Hurst entered the world in 1922, his cradle a windswept farm nestled by the ocean's edge near Jacksonville, North Carolina. He was the youngest of three children born to Andrew and Kate Hurst. After a childhood flavored by the briny air, he pursued his studies at North Carolina State College. When World War II erupted, Hurst donned the uniform of the United States Army, serving his country for three resolute years. Although initially nurturing the ambitions of a chemical engineer, a melody within him yearned to be heard, leading him to the hallowed halls of the Juilliard School of Music in New York. With aspirations of gracing the operatic stage, his journey took him across the Atlantic to the historic city of Rome, Italy. He immersed himself in the rich tapestry of European culture for four years. However, upon his return to America, he acknowledged his operatic dreams were not to be and gracefully pivoted to a new path. In 1951, he embarked on a prosperous career in the international department of Chase Manhattan Bank, New York, where he dedicated his skills until his retirement in 1984.

Amidst the bustling corridors of the bank during his first decade, Hurst found solace in the realm of words, writing fervently in his spare hours. His literary creations—short stories and a play—found homes in smaller literary journals. Yet, it was "The Scarlet Ibis," his debut tale to grace the pages of a national magazine, that marked a turning point. Debuting in The Atlantic Monthly in July 1960, the story was awarded the prestigious Atlantic First Award for fiction, an accolade that spoke volumes of its impact. In a conversation with this reviewer, Hurst remarked how the story "took on a life of its own," blossoming into a revered classic. Since the late 1960s, it has adorned the pages of numerous high-school and college literature textbooks, its legacy enduring. Unfortunately, none of Hurst's subsequent works would replicate this triumph.

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