The Thread® - Books and Literary News

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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.

September 5, 2018 12:00 AM

From poverty to rocket scientist to CEO, a Girl Scout's inspiring story

When she was a Brownie, Sylvia Acevedo was inspired to earn her science badge. In her new memoir, the Girl Scouts CEO says this experience led directly to her career at NASA.

by Elissa Nadworny

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September 5, 2018 12:00 AM

'Fashion Climbing' is a lesson in perseverance

Written with more enthusiasm than literary panache, fashion and society photographer Bill Cunningham's memoir, discovered after his death, is a charming ode to being true to oneself.

by Heller McAlpin

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September 4, 2018 12:00 AM

Viola Davis brings a new 'Corduroy' book to bear

Inspired by her daughter, the Emmy, Tony and Oscar-winning actress has written a picture book. "Corduroy Takes a Bow" continues the adventures of a curious teddy bear and his young friend Lisa.

by David Greene

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September 3, 2018 12:04 PM

In 'Small Animals,' a mom grapples with parenting in an 'age of fear'

In 2011, Kim Brooks intentionally left her 4-year-old in a car as she ran into a Target. In her new book, she attempts to reckon with the consequences of her decision, and parenting in today's world.

by Mariya Karimjee

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September 2, 2018 10:30 AM

Drag Queen Story Hour sparks protests in conservative towns

Drag Queen Story Hours have been held at libraries or book stores in big cities including Los Angeles, Chicago, New York and the Twin Cities. In some smaller communities, however, the programs have sparked protests from conservative and religious groups.

by Associated Press

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September 2, 2018 7:30 AM

'Rush': The other Founding Father from Philadelphia named Benjamin

Stephen Fried's biography argues that Benjamin Rush -- a pioneering physician, writer and a signatory to the Declaration of Independence -- belongs on the historical tier of Benjamin Franklin.

by Melissa Block

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September 2, 2018 12:00 AM

'Dog Symphony' is less a novel than a mood given form

Sam Munson has written a weird book that doesn't try to hide its weirdness. It's nominally about a professor of prison architecture visiting a conference in Buenos Aires -- but then there are the dogs.

by Jason Sheehan

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August 31, 2018 3:28 PM

Bob Dylan, Woody Guthrie and the history of protest

"More than a history of music, this is actually a history of the United States, and of protest in the early twentieth century," says bookseller Ruth Hulbert.

by Tracy Mumford

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August 31, 2018 6:20 AM

An aunt's memoir: Remembering the drowned Syrian boy on the beach

Tima Kurdi has written a book that tells the story of the family's attempt to cross from Turkey to Greece in a rubber boat -- and the struggle to make sense of the tragedy.

by Diane Cole

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August 30, 2018 9:33 AM

'Gross Anatomy' turns humor on taboos about the female body

Author Mara Altman got tired of hiding her hairy, sweaty self from the world, and set out to reframe the shame in her latest book of essays -- part memoir, part scientific exploration, part manifesto.

by Ailsa Chang and Alyssa Edes

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