Library + Community Reads Speakers

Our award-winning author speakers are favorites for libraries and community reads. Their compelling stories entertain audiences and ignite conversations that continue long after their events end.

Brit Bennett

Novelist of National Book Award nominated, New York Times-bestselling The Vanishing Half, and National Book Foundation 2016 5 Under 35 Honoree

Geraldine Brooks

Author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning March and the international bestselling People of the Book

Hernan Diaz

Pulitzer Prize winning author of Trust and In the Distance

Colson Whitehead

Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award-winning author of The Underground Railroad and The Nickel Boys

Javier Zamora

Memoirist, poet, and author of Solito, and a winner of the 2023 American Book Award.

More Library + Community Reads Speakers

Omar El Akkad

Award-winning journalist and author of the debut novel American War

Will Allen

Founder of Growing Power, MacArthur 'Genius' Award winner, and author of The Good Food Revolution

Andrea Bartz

Journalist and New York Times bestselling author of psychological thrillers

Cat Bohannon

Researcher and New York Times bestselling author of Eve: How the Female Body Drove 200 Million Years of Human Evolution

Francisco Cantú

Author of the bestselling memoir The Line Becomes a River and former US Border Patrol Agent

Casey Cep

New York Times bestselling author of Furious Hours and New Yorker staff writer

Ron Chernow

Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Washington: A Life and Alexander Hamilton

Lee Child

New York Times bestselling author of the Jack Reacher novels

Ingrid Rojas Contreras

Author of Fruit of the Drunken Tree and National Book Award finalist The Man Who Could Move Clouds

Junot Díaz

Author of New York Times bestsellers The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao and This is How You Lose Her; winner of the 2008 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction

Jennifer Egan

Author of The Candy House and the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel A Visit from the Goon Squad

Nathan Englander

Finalist for the 2013 Pulitzer Prize in fiction and author of Dinner at the Center of the Earth and kaddish.com

Danielle Evans

Recipient of the National Book Foundation's 'Under 35' award and author of Before You Suffocate Your Own Fool Self and The Office of Historical Corrections

Gillian Flynn

Award-winning author of the #1 bestselling novel Gone Girl

Jamie Ford

New York Times-bestselling author and book club favorite

Karen Joy Fowler

Award-winning and bestselling author of The Jane Austen Book Club and We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves

Diana Gabaldon

#1 New York Times-bestselling author of the Outlander series

Lisa Gardner

#1 New York Times-bestselling crime thriller novelist

Adam Gidwitz

New York Times-bestselling author of the Grimm books and The Inquisitor's Tale

Paul Greenberg

James Beard Award-winning author of the New York Times bestseller Four Fish: The Future of the Last Wild Food and American Catch: The Fight for Our Local Seafood

Lauren Groff

National Book Award finalist and bestselling author of Fates and Furies and Matrix

Tess Gunty

National Book Award-winning author of The Rabbit Hutch

Yaa Gyasi

Author of Homegoing and Transcendent Kingdom, and recipient of the National Book Foundation's 'Under 35' award

Mohsin Hamid

Bestselling author of The Reluctant Fundamentalist, How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia, and Exit West

Dr. Michele Harper

Emergency room physician and author of the New York Times-bestselling The Beauty in Breaking

Charlaine Harris

New York Times-bestselling author of the Sookie Stackhouse novels, the basis for the hit HBO series True Blood

Doc Hendley

Founder and president of Wine to Water, CNN Hero, and author of Wine to Water

Cristina Henríquez

Critically acclaimed author of The Book of Unknown Americans and The Great Divide

Cathy Park Hong

Award-winning poet and New York Times-bestselling author of Minor Feelings

Craig Johnson

New York Times-bestselling author of the Walt Longmire series

Dr. Ibram X. Kendi

National Book Award-winning historian and #1 New York Times-bestselling author of Stamped from the Beginning and How to Be an Antiracist

Rachel Khong

Award-winning author of Goodbye, Vitamin and Real Americans

Julie Klam

New York Times-bestselling author of Friendkeeping and You Had Me at Woof

Phil Klay

U.S. Marine Corps veteran and author of Redeployment, winner of 2014 National Book Award for Fiction

Mark Kurlansky

New York Times bestselling-author of Cod, Salt, and The Food of a Younger Land

Jean Kwok

Award-winning author of Girl in Translation

Ariel Lawhon

Critically acclaimed New York Times bestselling author of historical fiction

Chang-rae Lee

New York Times-bestselling author of The Surrendered and Native Speaker

Ariel Levy

Author of the New York Times-bestselling memoir The Rules Do Not Apply

Jason De León

Anthropologist, professor, and author of The Land of Open Graves and Soldiers and Kings

Kelly Link

MacArthur “Genius Grant” fellow, writer of celebrated short stories and The Book of Love

Steve Lopez

Author of The Soloist: A Lost Dream, an Unlikely Friendship, and the Redemptive Power of Music

Rebecca Makkai

Author of Pulitzer Prize-finalist The Great Believers and I Have Some Questions for You

Hisham Matar

Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The Return, In the Country of Men, and My Friends

Paula McLain

New York Times-bestselling author of The Paris Wife, Circling the Sun, Love and Ruin and When the Stars Go Dark

Dinaw Mengestu

Named one of The New Yorker "20 Under 40" writers to watch and author of The Beautiful Things That Heaven Bears and How to Read the Air

Candice Millard

New York Times bestselling historian and former National Geographic journalist

Chanel Miller

Artist, activist, and author of the New York Times bestseller Know My Name

Beth Nguyen

Author of Pioneer Girl, Stealing Buddha's Dinner and Short Girls

Emi Nietfeld

Software engineer, writer, and author of Acceptance

Sigrid Nunez

Author of the 2018 National Book Award winner and New York Times bestseller, The Friend

Jenny Odell

New York Times-bestselling author of How to Do Nothing and Saving Time

Tommy Orange

Bestselling novelist and author of There There and Wandering Stars

Delia Owens

#1 New York Times-bestselling author of Where the Crawdads Sing and wildlife scientist

Matt de la Peña

New York Times-bestselling author of books for children and young adults

Eve Rodsky

New York Times-bestselling author and creative leadership expert

Karen Russell

Author of the acclaimed bestseller Swamplandia! and Orange World

Marjane Satrapi

Academy Award-nominated director, cartoonist, and author of Persepolis

Will Schwalbe

New York Times-bestselling author of We Should Not Be Friends

Dani Shapiro

Bestselling author of Hourglass and Inheritance, host of the Family Secrets podcast.

Chris Smalls

Labor organizer and president and co-founder of the Amazon Labor Union

J. Ryan Stradal

New York Times-bestselling author of Kitchens of the Great Midwest

Cheryl Strayed

Author of the #1 New York Times-bestselling memoir Wild and "Dear Sugar" columnist

Mark Sundeen

Award-winning author of The Man Who Quit Money and The Unsettlers

Sabaa Tahir

National Book Award winner and #1 New York Times-bestselling author of An Ember in the Ashes and All My Rage

Hadley Vlahos

Hospice nurse, palliative care advocate, author of New York Times bestseller The In-Between

Ocean Vuong

Poet and author of On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous

Isabel Wilkerson

Pulitzer Prize winner and author of the critically-acclaimed bestsellers The Warmth of Other Suns and Caste

John Wood

Founder and board co-chairman of Room to Read and author of Creating Room to Read: A Story of Hope in the Battle for Global Literacy

Alora Young

Spoken word poet and author of Walking Gentry Home

Charles Yu

National Book Award-winning author of Interior Chinatown

Gabrielle Zevin

New York Times-bestselling author of Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow

Markus Zusak

#1 New York Times- bestselling author of The Book Thief