Barr, Nevada

Nevada Barr (born March 1, 1952) is an American author best known for her Anna Pigeon series of mystery novels set in national parks in the United States.Although Barr was born in Yerington, Nevada, she was named not after her state of birth but after a character in one of her father's favorite books.^[1] She grew up in Johnstonville, California, and finished college at the University of California, Irvine. With a master's degree in drama, she pursued a career in theater, TV, films, commercials and voice work for almost two decades. When her then-director husband changed careers and became interested in the environmental movement, she began working as a seasonal park ranger in the summer. Barr created the Anna Pigeon series while working at her second seasonal job in Guadalupe Mountains National Park, Texas. Pigeon is a law enforcement ranger with the United States National Park Service. The books in the series take place in various national parks where Pigeon solves murders that are often related to natural resource issues. Barr's first permanent park ranger job was on the Natchez Trace Parkway in Mississippi. She resigned to focus on writing when her books began to achieve commercial success.