The Thread® - Books and Literary 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.

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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.

April 2, 2020 6:00 AM

In 'Hurricane Season,' words swirl wild and dark

Fernanda Melchor's poetic, foul-mouthed new novel sits on the border between crime fiction and horror: A woman known as the Witch has been murdered, and her neighbors want to know who did it and why.

by Gabino Iglesias

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April 1, 2020 8:21 AM

'A matter of common decency': What literature can teach us about epidemics

Authors explore questions of morality, evil, solidarity and survival in Albert Camus' “The Plague,” Geraldine Brooks' “Year of Wonders” and Karen Thompson Walker's “The Dreamers.”

by Melissa Block

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March 31, 2020 1:22 PM

Jonathan Karl's memoir shows that everyone is 'Front Row at the Trump Show'

The ABC White House correspondent avoids bravado and knows better than to let insiders use his book to sound off about their enemies. But the obviousness of his account reveals an alarming truth.

by Annalisa Quinn

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March 31, 2020 6:00 AM

With the 'I Am' books, you are a hero too

Our kids' books columnist Juanita Giles reports that, stuck at home with her family, she's turned to the I am series, by Brad Meltzer and Christopher Eliopoulos, for stories about relatable heroes.

by Juanita Giles

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March 30, 2020 8:03 PM

Tomie DePaola, author of 'Strega Nona,' has died

The author and illustrator — who, by his own reckoning, worked on more than 270 titles — died Monday at age 85. Among his classics is the Caldecott winner “Strega Nona,” a seemingly ancient folk tale.

by Anastasia Tsioulcas

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March 30, 2020 2:19 PM

The Thread: Three spies you must meet

As we turn to books both new and familiar during this time of isolation, this week’s Thread post introduces you to three spies.

by Kerri Miller

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March 30, 2020 2:04 PM

Authors, publishers condemn the 'National Emergency Library' as 'piracy'

Citing the coronavirus, the Internet Archive expanded its lending program for the digital copies of millions of books. But many writers and publishers say it is sharing their work without permission.

by Colin Dwyer

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March 28, 2020 7:17 AM

Samantha Irby: 'This is the glamorous life of a writer"

Irby's new essay collection is “Wow, No Thank You.” She says it was inspired by moving from Chicago to Kalamazoo and feeling like a fish out of water, with no friends and a strange house.

by Scott Simon

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March 28, 2020 6:00 AM

Uncovering the secrets of a fallen ruler in 'Empress Of Salt And Fortune'

Nghi Vo's new novel is poised at the end of one empire and the beginning of another, as a cleric and their talking-bird assistant set about uncovering the dangerous secrets of a forgotten palace.

by Jessica P. Wick

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March 27, 2020 4:32 PM

From Louis Erdrich to Kurt Vonnegut, a reading list for social distancing

In a time of change and turmoil, many listeners are turning to books for entertainment and comfort. Listeners and book experts nominated their favorites during a recent conversation on MPR News with Kerri Miller.

by Breann Schossow

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