The Thread® - Books and Literary News

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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.

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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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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.

Ask a bookseller: Left Bank Books in St. Louis
Bookseller Shane Mullen has two eerie, unsettling reads for your October book list. The first deals with a horror film gone awry in the Amazon and the second revolves around the mysterious disappearance of young twin girls.
Here's the only good thing -- books! -- about the Lynx losing the WNBA championship
The mayors of Minneapolis and Los Angeles staged a friendly wager over the game: The loser has to send a shipment of books by local women authors to the winning city. Minneapolis is preparing to send the books next week.
'American Crime Story' to tackle the tale of a serial killer with Minnesota connections
The third season of the television show will tell the story of Andrew Cunanan, who killed fashion designer Gianni Versace in Florida in 1997 — after a killing spree that began in Minnesota just weeks before.
New 'American Pastoral' movie is a '60s tale still relevant today
The new film "American Pastoral" tells the story of a father in 1960s New Jersey whose comfortable, suburban life falls apart after his daughter becomes radicalized, commits a crime and disappears.
In 'IQ,' a Sherlock for South Central
Joe Ide's debut novel follows Isaiah Quintabe, known as IQ around his Los Angeles neighborhood. IQ solves the crimes police won't touch -- even when his clients can only pay him in chickens or tires.
How long does it take to write a bestseller?
Some writers (looking at you, Stephen King) can churn out two books in a year. Some writers take more than a decade. Here's a look at how long it took to write your favorite book.
13 scary books worth the nightmares
October is the perfect time to terrify yourself with a good book. Whether you like modern horrors or good, old-fashioned haunted houses, these books are sure to keep you up at night.
The 'Fireside Guide' has delightfully simple answers to your grown-up problems
The new "Fireside Grown-Up Guide" series is a throwback to the brightly-colored life lessons of your childhood. They're dark and dry and surprisingly funny, a pleasant tonic for your grown-up cares.