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Librarian's Picks: Saving the Best for First

The tale of an imaginary universe where elevators are really important, the story of the first giraffe in Europe and a novel about a drug that restores lost memories. Intriguing-sounding books by themselves, but what makes them more alluring is that they are all authors' debut works.

Seattle librarian Nancy Pearl says writers pour their heart and soul into their first books. "Not that they don't do it for subsequent books, but I think in some cases maybe the best has come out there."

She talks with Steve Inskeep about some of her favorite first books and what makes them worth pulling off the shelf again and again.

Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Steve Inskeep is a host of NPR's Morning Edition, as well as NPR's morning news podcast Up First.
Nancy Pearl
Nancy Pearl is a regular commentator about books on NPR's Morning Edition and NPR affiliate stations KUOW in Seattle and KWGS in Tulsa.