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The Thread® - Books and Literary News

The Thread from MPR News

The Thread® is your source for book recommendations and other literary news.

Ask a Bookseller

Ask a Bookseller is a weekly series where The Thread checks in with booksellers around the country about their favorite books of the moment. Listen to Ask a Bookseller to find your next favorite book.

Big Books and Bold Ideas

Big Books and Bold Ideas is a weekly series hosted by Kerri Miller every Friday at 11 a.m., featuring conversations about books and other literary ideas. Listen to Big Books and Bold Ideas here.

Sign Up for The Thread® Newsletter

Sign up for The Thread newsletter to get reading recommendations from Kerri Miller and other bookworms around the MPR newsroom. Find reviews for new releases, as well as hidden gems you may have missed.

Talking Volumes

Talking Volumes is back for its 25th season. Join us at the Fitzgerald Theater for four special events with renowned authors, celebrating our anniversary with a special $25 ticket price for MPR members and Star Tribune subscribers. Buy tickets here.

'When You Trap A Tiger' and 'We Are Water Protectors' win top children's book honors

'When You Trap A Tiger' and 'We Are Water Protectors' win top children's book honors

America's librarians award Tae Keller's “When You Trap A Tiger” the Newbery Medal and “We Are Water Protectors” illustrated by Michaela Goade and written by Carole Lindstrom won the Caldecott medal.
by Meghan Collins Sullivan

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The Trojan women — and many more — speak up in 'A Thousand Ships'

The Trojan women — and many more — speak up in 'A Thousand Ships'

Natalie Haynes's new book tells the epic story of the Trojan War from the perspectives of the women involved in it. And that means all the women — from Troy and Sparta, goddesses, Amazons and more.
by Lulu Garcia-Navarro

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Alyda Gilkey on the life and legacy of her son David, who put 'Pictures on the Radio'

Alyda Gilkey on the life and legacy of her son David, who put 'Pictures on the Radio'

Photographer David Gilkey died in 2016 while on assignment in Afghanistan. His mother, Alyda Gilkey, remembers the man behind the lens: an adventurous soul who had a way of putting his subjects at ease.
by Scott Simon

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Just move: Scientist author debunks myths about exercise and sleep

Just move: Scientist author debunks myths about exercise and sleep

Paleoanthropologist Daniel Lieberman says the concept of "getting exercise" is relatively new. His new book, “Exercised,” examines why we run, lift and walk for a workout when our ancestors didn't.
by Terry Gross

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'White Freedom' examines the tandem development of the concepts of freedom and race

'White Freedom' examines the tandem development of the concepts of freedom and race

Tyler Stovall writes white freedom is "the belief (and practice) that freedom is central to white racial identity, and that only white people can or should be free" — noting nations were built on it.
by Ilana Masad

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In 'Remote Control,' drones fly over the yam fields of a near-future Africa

In 'Remote Control,' drones fly over the yam fields of a near-future Africa

Nnedi Okorafor's multi-faceted new novella follows a young girl in a near-future version of Ghana who becomes the Adopted Daughter of Death — but she can't quite figure out how that happened.
by Jason Heller

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'Doctors Blackwell' tells the story of 2 pioneering sisters who changed medicine

'Doctors Blackwell' tells the story of 2 pioneering sisters who changed medicine

Elizabeth Blackwell was the first woman in America to earn her medical degree. Her sister Emily followed in her footsteps. Janice Nimura tells the story of the "complicated, prickly" trailblazers.
by Dave Davies

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