'Witness to history; opportunity to live it'

 

“Journalism allows its readers to witness history; fiction gives its readers an opportunity to live it.” –  John Hersey

Born in China (to missionary parents) on June 17, 1914 Hersey is perhaps best known for his bio-novel A Bell for Adano, and for his feature story "Hiroshima" about the aftermath of the first atomic bomb.  In the span of two years he won the Pulitzer Prize for Bell, and waves of accolades for “Hiroshima,” later judged “the finest piece of American journalism of the 20th century” by a 36-member panel associated with New York University’s journalism department.

 

Adano is the story of an Italian-American military officer who wins the respect and admiration of the people of Adano, Sicily, by helping them find a replacement for the town bell that the Fascists had melted down for rifle barrels.   The tale grew directly out of his own WWII experiences.

 

That book was the third of 27 that Hersey wrote, including a terrific book based on his parents’ and their contemporaries’ missionary experience titled The Call.   Hersey also had a long journalistic career led by “Hiroshima.”   Written in August, 1946 the 31,000-word article was published by The New Yorker and told from the viewpoint of 6 survivors.  The story occupied almost the entire issue – something The New Yorker had never done before, nor has since. 

 

Shortly before his 1993 death, Yale (his alma mater) honored Hersey by creating an annual lecture series in his name.  In dedicating the series, fellow Yale alum and author, David McCullough said, “Hersey portrayed our time with a breadth and artistry matched by very few. He has given us the century in a great shelf of brilliant work, and we are all his beneficiaries."