author
James Hilton
1900–1954
Best known for creating Shangri-La and for the quietly moving Goodbye, Mr. Chips, this British-born novelist wrote stories that blended nostalgia, idealism, and a sharp eye for character.
3 Audiobooks
About the author
Born in Leigh, Lancashire, in 1900, James Hilton grew up as the son of a schoolmaster and later studied at Christ’s College, Cambridge. He began publishing while still young and went on to become one of the most widely read popular novelists of the 1930s and 1940s.
His most famous books include Lost Horizon, which introduced the world to Shangri-La, Goodbye, Mr. Chips, and Random Harvest. Several of his novels were adapted into successful films, and Hilton also worked in screenwriting; he shared an Academy Award for the screenplay of Mrs. Miniver.
Hilton eventually lived in the United States as well as Britain, and his work often balanced warmth, melancholy, and a longing for decency in unsettled times. He died in Long Beach, California, in 1954, but his fiction still stands out for its graceful style and enduring emotional pull.