"Nancy Pearl" is an American librarian, best-selling author, literary critic and was, until August 2004, the Executive Director of the Washington Center for the Book at Seattle Central Library/Seattle Public Library. Her prolific reading and her knowledge of books and literature first made her locally famous in Seattle, Washington, where she regularly appears on public radio recommending books. She achieved broader fame with Book Lust, her 2003 guide to good reading. Pearl was named 2011 Librarian of the Year by Library Journal.

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I have for a long time felt that our society is becoming more and more fractured and divisive and that you could go a whole day without really talking to another person. If you give people a good book to talk about, you can build a community out of a diverse group. A common language grows out of it.

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I just said, 'Well, the real people performing miracles every day are librarians,' and we all laughed ourselves off our chairs.

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I was just totally blown away by the humor and grace, and ability... to bring her characters to life. The voice is so confiding and so honest.

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