Edwidge Danticat

Join the 2019-2020 Roy and Shirley Durst Distinguished Chair in Literature 

Born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Edwidge Danticat is the author of many books, including Breath, Eyes, Memory (1994), an Oprah Book Club selection; Krik? Krak! (1996), a finalist for the National Book Award; and Everything Inside, named a best book of 2019 by NPR, Time, and BuzzFeed. Her 2007 memoir, Brother, I’m Dying, was a finalist for the National Book Award and winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award for Autobiography. Her many recognitions include a MacArthur Fellowship, honorary degrees from Smith College, Yale University, and the University of the West Indies Open Campus, and the 2017 Neustadt International Prize for Literature.   

The Roy and Shirley Durst Distinguished Chair in Literature Endowment supports the Roy and Shirley Durst Distinguished Chair in Literature, awarded to a professor whose work bridges literature and the visual or performing arts, and the Durst Distinguished Lecture Series, for visiting professors and other lecturers.  This generous support has benefited the college and especially enriched the School of Liberal Arts and Sciences, the School of Humanities, and the Literature and Creative Writing Programs at Purchase College. Visit purchase.edu/durst for more information.