Spotlight: Denver's new city librarian Nicolle Davies

• She's effectively DPL's CEO, overseeing a $92 million budget with nearly 800 staffers across 27 library branches. She's stepping into her new role as four branches will temporarily close this year to undergo renovations.

Context: Davies tells us she doesn't believe you can have a democracy without free press or public libraries, places she calls "magical" for their ability to welcome and help just about anyone.

What she's saying: "We don't have an agenda," Davies told us. "We are literally here to serve and just lay out information, and then you can arrive at your own decisions or your own conclusion."

We caught up with Davies to learn more about what she's reading, listening to and watching.

📖 Favorite books: "The Outsiders" by S. E. Hinton and "A Discovery of Witches" by Deborah Harkness.

• "I think [The Outsiders] is a timeless story about friendship and loyalty," she says.

📚 Currently reading: "All the Colors of the Dark" by Chris Whitaker.

🏛️ Favorite DPL branch: "I'm not answering that," she tells us playfully. "That's like saying you have a favorite kid."

🎵 Streaming: Indie pop singer-songwriter ROLE MODEL, whom she learned about from her teenage children.

📺 On the queue: "And Just Like That..." on HBO.

📎 One thing on her desk: A picture of her family and a business card holder gifted to her by Eloise May, who has a library named after her in Arapahoe County.