Nancy Garden (May 15, 1938 – June 23, 2014) was an American writer of fiction for children and young adults, known for her groundbreaking lesbian novel Annie on My Mind. Her work has been a beacon for LGBTQ+ literature, providing representation and fostering acceptance.

Throughout her career, Garden received numerous accolades, including the prestigious 2003 Margaret Edwards Award from the American Library Association for her lifetime contribution to writing for teens. This award specifically cited Annie on My Mind as a significant work. In 2014, the novel was also awarded the Lee Lynch Classic Award by the Golden Crown Literary Society, recognizing it as a seminal classic in lesbian literature.

Garden's novel Annie on My Mind has been both celebrated and controversial. It found itself at the center of a censorship battle when it was banned from school libraries in Olathe, Kansas, among others, and even burned in front of the Kansas City School Board building in 1993. A lawsuit by a group of high school students and their parents in Olathe was necessary to return the book to library shelves. Despite these challenges, the book remains an important and influential work, continuing to be viewed as one of the most important books for teens in recent history.