Fourteen - by Leslie Johansen Nack (Paperback)

About the Book

Leslie is fourteen in 1975 when she and her two teenage sisters batten down the hatches on their forty-five-foot sailboat to navigate from San Diego to French Polynesia--a difficult journey that also puts them at the mercy of the stormy temper of their abusive, larger-than-life Norwegian father and captain.

Book Synopsis

Winner in the National Indie Excellence Awards, the Next Generation Indie Awards, the Independent Press Awards, the Beverly Hills Book Awards, and the Readers' Favorite Book Awards

After her mother and father divorce at age seven, Leslie quickly learns the hard lessons of being Dad's favorite. The abuse begins at age nine and doesn't end until she begins to fight back, finally, at age fourteen. Her father, a larger-than-life Norwegian, assumed full custody of Leslie and her two sisters and moved the family from their 63-acre rustic ranch in Northern California to a 45-foot sailboat in Southern California. The family spent two years living aboard their boat preparing for the trip of their father's dreams: a trip around the world. On February 5, 1975, the family set sail for French Polynesia.

Intense and inspiring, Fourteen is a coming-of-age adventure story about a young girl who comes into her own power, fights back against abuse, becomes an accomplished sailor, and falls in love with the ocean and the natural world. The outer voyage is a mirror of her inner journey, and her goal is to find the strength to endure in a dangerous world, and within a difficult family.

Fourteen's sequel, Nineteen: A Daughter's Memoir of Reckoning and Recovery, publishes October 14, 2025.

Review Quotes

2017 Independent Press Awards Winner in Memoir
2016 Beverly Hills Book Awards Winner in Memoir
2016 Indie Excellence Winner in Young Adult Non-Fiction
2016 Readers' Favorite Awards Bronze Winner in Non-fiction: Travel
2016 Next Gen Indie Awards Finalist in Memoirs (Overcoming Adversity/Tragedy/Challenges)

"A debut memoir reveals a turbulent adolescence. At first glance, the voyage of Bjorn Johansen and his three daughters from San Diego to the islands of Tahiti in 1975 ... has all the makings of a standard adventure story. In keeping with the tone of the project as a whole, [the] ending, while somewhat abrupt, is powerful and inspiring. Perhaps the only quibble is that Nack leaves readers wanting more. An engaging account, gripping from start to finish, that should appeal to a wide audience, including sailing enthusiasts."--Kirkus Reviews

"An at times harrowing but ultimately uplifting account of a young girl finding her voice and asserting herself after being taken away to sea."--Suzanne Heywood, author of Wavewalker

"Riveting and heartfelt, Fourteen is a profoundly moving coming-of-age memoir that stays with the reader for a long time."--Lene Fogelberg, Wall Street Journal best-selling author of Beautiful Affliction

"The raw and emotional debut novel by Leslie Johansen Nack has it all: mid-Pacific monster storms, emergencies at sea, a young female heroine, sex and drugs all while exploring the world on a 45-foot custom-built sailboat. All of this intrigue combines to tell the incredible true story of a young teenaged girl, as told by the author, her two sisters and their father, as they untangle the daily web of incredibly wondrous and equally appalling experiences while sailing from Oceanside, San Diego, to the Marquesas, Tuamotu and Society islands. Full of conflict and secrets, adventure and survival, this page-turner is as good as it gets and will be passed on to passionate sailors for decades to come."--Pacific Yachting Magazine

"Fourteen is the riveting story of a girl and her sisters coming of age and struggling to survive staggering odds as her father pursues his dream of sailing his own boat to Tahiti. This book totally captures the intrigue and romance of arriving under sail in the South Pacific during the mid-'70s."--John Neal, offshore cruising companion and author of Log of the Mahina

"Fourteen is the poignant and gripping coming-of-age story of Leslie Johansen Nack, a smart, strong girl who sails to Tahiti with her two sisters and predatory father in 1975. With him as captain of their 45' boat, Nack's life depends upon him . . . until he falls ill. The skills and confidence Nack gains from sailing, combined with her indomitable will, help Nack fight back against her father's abuse--and might even help her save his life. In candid, clear, even-handed prose, Leslie Johansen Nack's Fourteen is an important book, one that takes us on a lush journey to distant lands and through the complexities and resilience of the human spirit."--Janna Cawrse Esarey, author of The Motion of the Ocean

"Fourteen is a simply beautiful tale of wild bravery."--San Gabriel Valley Tribune

"As the story unfolds, you find yourself simultaneously holding your breath for the next episode of her dad's strange behavior, and cheering for Leslie's growing strength in dealing with it. She not only survives, she shows an amazing strength in dealing with situations that would overwhelm many adults, let alone fourteen-year-olds. I found the book gripping."--Carolyn Shearlock, The Boat Galley.Com

"Despite a dysfunctional family life, fourteen-year-old Leslie Johansen learns to stand up to her father's abuse and becomes an accomplished sailor. This true adventure about sailing the South Pacific is an uplifting testament to the strength of a young teen."--The Ensign

"Nack's interest in sailing is not superficial. She has a respect for the ocean that her father teaches her; this is one of the reasons she is so close to him. But she knows she has much more to learn. She battles the standard teenage demons of boys and school, but her unconventional home life is a fascinating tale. Set against the background of life with a floating home, the teenage angst is not the focus of the story. [Fourteen] is not just a sailing story, nor is it a coming-of-age tale, but a splendid mix of the two."--Sailing Magazine

About the Author

Leslie Johansen Nack is the author of two award-winning books: her debut memoir, Fourteen, and her historical novel, The Blue Butterfly. Her forthcoming sequel, Nineteen: A Daughter's Memoir of Reckoning and Recovery, concludes her raw and deeply personal story that chronicles her path to sobriety and a renewed sense of hope. Nack graduated from UCLA with a degree in English literature, and she overcame past traumas to raise two children in a healthy, loving home. She is a member of The Authors' Guild, The Historical Novel Society, and the Pacific Northwest Writers Association. She lives outside Seattle with her husband of thirty-five years. You can find more about Leslie and her work at www.lesliejohansennack.com.