Charles B. Nordhoff
a.k.a. Charles Bernard Nordhoff
Author Code: ACBN
Born: Feb. 1, 1887 - London, England
Died: Apr. 10, 1947 - Montecito, California, USA
Educated at Stanford University and Harvard University, Nordhoff graduated in 1909. He then worked at his father's businesses in Mexico and a brickworks in California. During the First World War, he was an ambulance driver in France, before joining the Lafayette Flying Corps. After the war, he remained in France and began working as a journalist. In 1919, he published The Fledgling, his first book. He met James Norman Hall at this time and the two formed a life-long partnership. They were commissioned to write the history of The Lafayette Flying Corps which was published in 1920. The pair returned to America and lived in Martha's Vineyard. Harper's Magazine commissioned them to write travel articles on the South Pacific, so they travelled to Tahiti and liked it so much that they stayed, Charles for twenty years and Hall for life. Their first book of the area was Faery Lands of the South Seas (1920-21) which was very popular. The two went on to collaborate on numerous works including the famous Bounty trilogy which included Mutiny on the Bounty (1932), Men Against the Sea (1934) and Pitcairn Island (1936). They continued their collaboration until 1945. Nordhoff returned to America around 1940 and published In Yankee Windjammers (1940). He was found dead in his home in Montecito under a suspicion of suicide. His own works include Picaro (1924), The Pearl Lagoon (1924) and The Derelict (1928). For collaborations, see Various Authors.
ACBN001 The Fledgling 1919 41 286k
ACBN002 The Pearl Lagoon 1924 81 495k
ACBN003 Picaro 1924 112 514k