James Hurst’s “The Scarlet Ibis”

This powerful, sweet, sad story has many layers – some a reader will never enjoy unless he or she does a little reflecting and a bit of research.

As for reflecting, think about your own experiences and see if you can relate to the narrator (we assume he's the author since he's never named). Like him, do you have younger siblings? Or, maybe you are the younger sibling. Have you ever considered how complex sibling relationships are in humans? Here's a good site to start exploring sibling relationships that you may find helpful:

• Does birth order affect personality?

Here’s a little background on the author, James Hurst:

• James Hurst

Here’s the text of the story:

• The Scarlet Ibis

Want to hear a woman with a British accent read the story to you? Here you go:

• Miette_Hurst1_loband

Here's a very helpful guide to the story from the folks at Schmoop:

• The Scarlet Ibis by James Hurst