Stacy Aumonier

Stacy Aumonier (1877–1928) was a British writer, sometimes mistakenly credited as Stacey Aumonier. Between 1913 and 1928, he wrote more than 85 short stories, 6 novels, a volume of character studies, and a volume of 15 essays.

It was as a short-story writer that he was most highly regarded.

Nobel Prize winner (and Forsyte Saga author) John Galsworthy described Stacy Aumonier as "one of the best short-story writers of all time" and predicted that, through the best of his stories, he would "outlive all the writers of his day."

James Hilton (author of Goodbye, Mr Chips and Lost Horizon) said of Aumonier: "I think his very best works ought to be included in any anthology of the best short stories ever written." Asked to choose "My Favourite Short Story" for the March 1939 edition of Good Housekeeping, James Hilton chose a story by Aumonier, "The Octave of Jealousy", which the magazine described as a "bitterly brilliant tale."

His short stories were published in 6 volumes during his lifetime, and in at least 25 different U.K. and U.S. magazines.

Stacy Aumonier was born at Hampstead Road near Regent’s Park, London on 31 March 1877 (not in 1887, as frequently but incorrectly recorded).

He came from a family with a strong and sustained tradition in the visual arts. His father, William Aumonier (1841–1914), was an architectural sculptor (founder of the Aumonier Studios off Tottenham Court Road, London), and his uncle was the painter, James Aumonier R.I. (1832–1911). Stacy’s brother, William (also an architectural sculptor) was responsible for recreating the interiors of Tutankhamun’s tomb at the British Empire Exhibition in Wembley in 1924. The landmark sculpture The Archer at East Finchley Station in London was the work of his nephew, Eric Aumonier.

The name, "Aumonier," came from Huguenot (French Protestant) ancestors.

Stacy attended Cranleigh School in Surrey from age 13 (from 1890 to 1893). Although he would later write critically about English public schools (both in London Evening Standard and New York Times articles) for the manner in which he considered they tried to impose conformity on their students, his record indicates that he integrated comfortably into Cranleigh. He was an ardent cricket player, belonged to the Literary and Debating Society, and became a prefect in his final year there.

When he left school, he seemed destined to follow family tradition, studying and working in the visual arts, in particular as a landscape painter. He exhibited paintings at the Royal Academy in 1902 and 1903, and in 1908, he exhibited a design for the entrance hall of a house. An exhibition of his work was held at the Goupil Gallery (London) in 1911.

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