Diane Ackerman was born on October 7, 1948 in Waukegan, Illinois. She is an American author, poet, essayist, journalist, memoirist and naturalist. She is best known for her work, A Natural History of the Senses. Her writing style can best be characterized as a blend of poetry, colloquial history and easy-reading science.

Ackerman received her B.A. in English from Pennsylvania State University as well as a M.A., M.F.A. and a Ph.D. from Cornell University in 1978. She is currently living in Ithaca, New York City, with her husband, novelist Paul West, to whom she has been married since 1970. Besides being a highly praised writer, Ackerman has worked as a professor in many universities, like Columbia, Cornell, University of Pittsburg, Washington University in St. Louis and others. She is also a staff writer for The New Yorker as well.

As an author, Ackerman has written many highly acclaimed works of non-fiction and poetry for adults and children. Her 2008 hit novel, The Zookeeper's Wife: A War Story, was made into a 2017 major motion picture. Many of her essays appear in various popular and literary journals. Generally, her works try to instill to the reader a very essential message that we are nature and we should live every moment and wake up to nature's everyday miracles.  A collection of her manuscripts, writings and papers, entitled The Diane Ackerman Papers, 1971-1997, can be found at the Cornell University Library.

Throughout her career she has received numerous awards, such as an honorary degree from Kenyon College, a Guggenheim Fellowship, the Orion Award, the John Burroughs Nature Award and the Lavan Poetry Prize. Last but not least, the New York Public Library has named her “Literary Lion” and a molecule has been named “dianeackerone”, after her.