William Hoffman (author)

William Hoffman
Born	Henry William Hoffman (1925-05-16)May 16, 1925 West Virginia
Died	September 12, 2009(2009-09-12) (aged 84)
Occupation	Writer novelist
Genre	American literature
Notable awards	Dos Passos Prize (1992) O. Henry Award (1996) Dashiell Hammett Award (1999)

Henry William Hoffman (May 16, 1925 – September 12, 2009) was an American writer who published thirteen novels and four books of short stories and two plays. He was born in West Virginia but spent his formative years in southwestern Virginia.

William Hoffman was the recipient of the 1992 John Dos Passos Prize. In 1996 he was awarded the O. Henry Prize, and in 1999 he received the Dashiell Hammett Award for the book Tidewater Blood. His short story "Dancer," published in The Sewanee Review, won the 1989 Andrew Lytle Prize. He wrote mysteries towards the end of his career. His first novel, The Trumpet Unblown, reflected his horrific experiences as a medic in World War II.

Novels

• The Trumpet Unblown (1955)
• Days in the Yellow Leaf (1958)
• A Place for My Head (1960)
• The Dark Mountains (1963)
• Yancey's War (1966)
• A Walk to the River (1970)
• A Death of Dreams (1973)
• The Land That Drank the Rain (1982)
• Godfires (1985)
• Furors Die (1990)
• Tidewater Blood (1998)
• Blood and Guile (2000)
• Wild Thorn (2002)
• Lies (2005)

Non-fiction

• Contract Killer (1992)

Short stories

• Virginia Reels (1978)
• By Land, By Sea (1988)
• Follow Me Home (1994)
• Doors (1999)

Further reading

• Frank, William, ed. The Fictional World of William Hoffman. Columbia, Missouri: University of Missouri Press, 2000.

External links

• Entry in Encyclopedia Virginia
• Biography from West Virginia Wesleyan College Library
• Photo and brief from Harper Collins