Humphreys, Josephine | South Carolina Public Radio

"H" is for Humphreys, Josephine (b. 1945). Novelist. Born in Charleston, Humphreys graduated from Duke and obtained an M.F.A. from Yale. In 1970, she began teaching at Baptist College in Charleston [now Charleston Southern University]. Drawing praise for its finely honed language and strong characters, her first novel, Dreams of Sleep (1984) won the Ernest Hemingway Prize for a first book of fiction. Humphreys’ second novel, Rich in Love (1987) was later made into a film. Fireman’s Fair (1991), her third novel, takes place following a destructive hurricane. Although Humphreys makes no attempt to capture the exact geography of Charleston, her novels bring the city to life, touching on its beauty, traditions, and troubled past ,as it clashes with the new developments on its fringes. In her writings, Josephine Humphreys has created memorable and strong women.