Bernard Palmer

Bernard Alvin Palmer (November 21, 1914 – May 7, 1998), born in Central City, Nebraska, was an American author who wrote more than 165 books, primarily Christian fiction for children and young adults. He created series such as the Danny Orlis series, the Felicia Cartright series, and the Pioneer Girls series, which he co-authored with his wife Marjorie Palmer.

Early life and education Bernard Palmer was born on November 21, 1914 in Central City, Nebraska, to Ben H. Palmer, who worked in the monument business, and Stella (Jarvis) Palmer. When he was four years old, his family moved to Holdrege, Nebraska. Palmer grew up on the prairies of Nebraska in an environment he later described as ideal training for a writer of children’s stories. His father organized rodeos throughout the region, and Palmer accompanied him on some of these trips. Palmer visited an uncle who taught on a South Dakota reservation and made annual family trips to his grandfather’s farm in Minnesota. Settings resembling the northern forests, prairies, and western landscapes he knew from childhood later appeared in his fiction.

Palmer attended Kearney State College in 1933 and Hastings College in 1940. Palmer later said that a writing assignment in a remedial English course prompted him to consider writing professionally.

Palmer wrote Christian juvenile fiction, adventure stories, and instructional books. His early books included Parson John (1942), Storm Winds (1942), and Visibility Zero (1944). Over subsequent decades his books were published by Zondervan, Moody Press, Back to the Bible, Bethany House, and Tyndale House.

Palmer died on May 7, 1998.