A Tidewater Morning

Three autobiographically inspired novellas by Styron that tell the story of a young writer’s journey to adulthood

William Styron’s A Tidewater Morning features three novellas centered around budding novelist Paul Whitehurst’s coming of age during the Great Depression and Second World War. They convey Whitehurst’s struggle to cope with his mother’s terminal cancer, his view of the strained racial relations in the pre-war American South, and his anxiety as a marine preparing to land on the beaches of Okinawa.

Each novella weaves together the transformative experiences of Whitehurst’s early life with Styron’s signature deep historical insight, underscoring how the significance of the past informs the present.

This ebook features a new illustrated biography of William Styron, including original letters, rare photos, and never-before-seen documents from the Styron family and the Duke University Archives.