Nancy Plain

Nancy Plain is an award-winning writer of biographies and histories for young readers--and readers of all ages. Her latest book, This Strange Wilderness: The Life and Art of John James Audubon, has earned a starred Kirkus review: "Like Audubon's paintings, this volume 'glows with life....A superb introduction to the life and times of a great American artist and naturalist.'" Another of her books, Light on the Prairie: Solomon D. Butcher, Photographer of Nebraska's Pioneer Days, has been called "a model of how a book for young readers can educate as well as delight" [Kate Elliott, The Annals of Iowa]. Among Plain's literary awards are three Spur Awards for Best Western Juvenile Nonfiction, the Nebraska Book Award for Youth Nonfiction, the Will Rogers Medallion Award, the Carter G. Woodson Honor Award, the Award of Merit from the American Association for State and Local History, and First Place in Children's Nonfiction from the National Federation of Press Women. "When I first started writing, I thought that the writing life would be a strictly solitary one. And it is to a great extent. I've been lucky to have the best dog in the world, my dachshund Molly, by my side while I write. So I never get lonely. But I also never imagined all the interesting places my books would take me and how many wonderful people I would meet along the way. People ask me, 'Why nonfiction?' Well, it's a mystery even to me why I'm drawn to it. For as long as I can remember, I've been in love with history--reading it and writing it. It's the closest I'll ever get to that time machine I dreamed about when I was a kid. Every biography I write becomes a journey into the world of my character, and I do believe that often "truth is stranger than fiction." I also hear from readers, 'Why do you, who are New Jersey born and bred, write so much about the West?' More than half my books are on Western topics because I love the land, the wild stories of how our country was settled, and how the West still embodies something unique in the American spirit. In all my books, Western or not, I try to tell a good story and hope that my own passion for the topic will shine through."