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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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.

May 6, 2009 3:23 PM

Literary escapes

When times are tough, a good book can provide an escape. Two book critics offer their suggestions for books that take readers to a different place.

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April 29, 2009 4:29 PM

Christian Moerk proves a Dane can write an Irish tale

Writer Christian Moerk has an ear for languages. Some might call him a linguistic shapeshifter. He grew up in Denmark, but worked in the US and in Ireland. When he decided to write a novel, he wanted to capture the distinctive language of Ireland's remote west coast.

by Euan Kerr

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April 28, 2009 4:45 PM

'B is for Beer' says author Tom Robbins in new book

Best-selling author Tom Robbins has made a career out of writing novels which make people laugh while also exploring the serious side of the human condition. His new book, "B is for Beer," is a children's book, where a little girl learns more than she wants to about beer and it's place in our culture.

by Euan Kerr

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April 23, 2009 3:53 PM

Talking Volumes: Sandra Cisneros

Author Sandra Cisneros and host Kerri Miller met before a full house of students and adults at Washburn High School in Minneapolis. Cisneros' groundbreaking work, "The House on Mango Street," was published 25 years ago. Singer and spoken word artist Dessa also performs.

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April 17, 2009 3:46 PM

Prize-winning Irish poet inspired by native seacoast

Poet Mary O'Malley comes from Connemara, a craggy, windswept area of the West of Ireland. It's where the rocks meet the sea, and life moves to the rhythm of the ancient Irish language. And she brings that sensibility, and that place, to her poetry.

by Tom Crann

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April 16, 2009 3:49 PM

Conference celebrates poet Robert Bly

Tonight the University of Minnesota is launching a three-day, international conference celebrating the work of Minnesota poet Robert Bly. The 82-year-old's legacy includes not just his poetry, but his work as a translator, an editor, and the leader of the men's movement.

by Marianne Combs

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April 15, 2009 12:00 AM

Reflections on life in Iran

As the friends and family await the sentencing of radio reporter and Fargo native Roxana Saberi, one friend reflects on the constraints of Iranian life. Journalist Azadeh Moaveni's new book centers on peaks and valleys of trying to marry and raise a family in the Islamic Republic.

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April 8, 2009 4:30 PM

Walter Mosley and his mysteries

Mystery author Walter Mosley introduces a new detective with a complicated past. Mosley's previous detective novels starred "Easy" Rawlins in popular books like "Devil in a Blue Dress." Mosley talks about how a new character and a new city energizes his work.

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April 3, 2009 5:00 PM

Joseph Boyden writes about native dichotomy

Joseph Boyden just won Canada's top literary prize for his book "Through Black Spruce." It's the story of a Cree family in Northern Ontario, but it demonstrates how modern native life includes many worlds.

by Euan Kerr

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April 3, 2009 2:08 PM

T. C. Boyle on Frank Lloyd Wright's hidden life

Most people know Frank Lloyd Wright from his buildings. But his personal life was a story unto itself. Novelist T.C. Boyle's latest work examines Wright's life and work from the viewpoint of the four principal women in his life.

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