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.

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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

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.

January 12, 2023 2:07 PM

Ask a Bookseller: Laziness does not exist

Bookseller Whit Robinson of Avid Bookshop in Athens, Georgia recommends one of her top reads: The nonfiction book “Laziness Does Not Exist” by Dr. Devon Price.

by Emily Bright

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January 12, 2023 9:45 AM

Anti-fatness keeps fat people on the margins, says Aubrey Gordon

In her new book “You Just Need To Lose Weight and 19 Other Myths About Fat People,” Aubrey Gordon tackles the biases and myths that she says keep fat people on the margins of society.

by Mallory Yu and Juana Summers

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January 9, 2023 8:27 AM

2022 Books We Love: Realistic Fiction

NPR's Books We Love is full of stories. The feature rounds up fiction and nonfiction of many different kinds, and it gives you lots of ways to find what you might love, too. Today, we're diving into the category of realistic fiction – the stories that may not be literally true, but they feel true to the world that people encounter when they walk out the door.

by Linda Holmes, Neda Ulaby, Chloe Veltman, Hafsa Fathima, Mike Katzif and Jessica Reedy

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January 7, 2023 4:00 AM

Ask a Bookseller: 'Ahmed Aziz's Epic Year' from April 2022

Shannon Brown of Wishing Tree Books in Spokane recommends Nina Hamza's debut novel, "Ahmed Aziz's Epic Year." "I love that the story doesn't talk down to children about the hard times they are going through," said Brown.

by Emily Bright

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January 6, 2023 12:00 PM

Online disinformation expert Joan Donovan on the power of memes

Memes have been used since America’s founding to motivate political action. But Harvard researcher and online disinformation expert Joan Donovan says they’ve never been so powerful. Her new book says they even incited the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.

by Kerri Miller and Kelly Gordon

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January 3, 2023 2:00 PM

'This Queer Book Saved my Life' podcast puts readers in conversation with their favorite authors

J.P Der Boghossian is a Minnesotan, founder of the Queer Armenian Library and a former broadcaster who has built a podcast around the power of stories.

by Ellen Finn

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December 31, 2022 8:00 AM

MPR News staff picks for 2022 books

Being journalists, we write a lot — but do we read? We asked our staff what their favorite books published in 2022 were. Here’s their reviews.

by Sam Stroozas

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December 30, 2022 12:00 PM

Formative characters: Three Minnesota authors share their favorites

For the last Big Books and Bold Ideas of 2022, MPR News host Kerri Miller asked three Minnesota writers — Peter Geye, Shannon Gibney and Benjamin Percy — to talk about their favorite literary characters. Their choices were unexpected and delightful.

by Kerri Miller and Kelly Gordon

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December 28, 2022 7:32 AM

Banned Books: Author Jerry Craft on telling stories all kids can identify with

Jerry Craft published the Newbury award-winning graphic novel New Kid in 2019. The novel focuses on the experience of being Black and the "new kid" at a predominantly white school.

by Pilar Galvan, Reena Advani and A Martínez

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December 24, 2022 8:00 AM

Ask a Bookseller: 'Inheritance'

Nathan McDowell of Two Dollar Radio Headquarters — an indie bookstore and press in Columbus, Ohio — recommends Taylor Johnson’s poetry book “Inheritance.”

by Emily Bright

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