Poet and author of such bestselling books as A Natural History of the Senses, A Natural History of Love, and An Alchemy of Mind, Diane Ackerman is one of our most brilliant and celebrated nature and science writers. An admiring critic once wrote of her, "If you're lucky, you have someone in your life like Diane Ackerman—smart and capable, and successful in the world of grownups. But still brimming with the kind of infectious enthusiasm and wonder found generally only in children." In her latest book, The Zookeeper's Wife, she draws upon her poet's gift for dazzling metaphor to capture a real-life war story of courage, faith, and determination in the face of horror. Her dinner talk will focus on how the power of human compassion can kindle our capacity for extraordinary acts of conscience and moral connection.