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.

Sign Up for The Thread® Newsletter

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 6, 2022 5:33 AM

'The Candy House' is a brilliant portrait of intersecting lives

In Jennifer Egan's novel, there is a persistent, lovely countermelody to the corporate project of mapping human experience; it's full of people engaged in a sweeter and more plaintive human algebra.

by Annalisa Quinn

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

April 5, 2022 10:00 AM

From the archives: Writer Max Porter on 'Grief is the Thing with Feathers'

This Friday, MPR News host Kerri Miller will talk with renowned grief expert and neuroscientist Mary-Frances O'Connor about happens in our brains when we grieve. But novels teach us just as much as science. In anticipation of the coming show, enjoy this one from the 2016 archives, when Miller talked with writer Max Porter about his debut novel, “Grief is the Thing with Feathers.”

by Kerri Miller and Kelly Gordon

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

April 5, 2022 6:18 AM

In 'Time is a Mother,' poet Ocean Vuong reflects on life, and time, without his mom

In his new collection, poet Ocean Vuong transforms Time, normally associated with death and erasure, into a mother with endlessly regenerative power.

by Thúy Đinh

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

April 4, 2022 4:04 PM

'Sea of Tranquility' reflects our pandemic woes through a time-travel lens

“Station Eleven” author Emily St. John Mandel wrote a book during these last two years of social isolation — about big moments in our lives and small moments in time.

by Natalie Zutter

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

April 4, 2022 10:33 AM

Efforts to ban books jumped an 'unprecedented' four-fold in 2021, ALA report says

The American Library Association says libraries faced the highest number of book challenges since they started tracking in 2000. Maia Kobabe's Gender Queer topped their list of most challenged books.

by Miranda Mazariegos and Meghan Collins Sullivan

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

April 2, 2022 7:00 AM

Ask a Bookseller: 'Island Queen' celebrates an ambitious Black woman entrepreneur from history

If you like the energy and ambition of the musical "Hamilton," Lelia Nebeker of One More Page Books in Arlington, Va., recommends you check out the novel “Island Queen” by Vanessa Riley.

by Emily Bright

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

April 1, 2022 11:33 AM

Kelly Weill on why conspiracy theories are spreading faster than ever

Despite centuries of evidence pointing otherwise, there are still people who believe the Earth is flat — and their numbers are growing, thanks to social media and a reinvigorated culture of conspiratorial thinking. Journalist Kelly Weill has studied the flat Earth movement for years. Her new book is “Off the Edge: Flat Earthers, Conspiracy Culture, and Why People Will Believe Anything.”

by Kerri Miller and Kelly Gordon

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

March 31, 2022 12:48 PM

These kids' authors are telling the stories of trans youth. Book bans won't stop them

As lawmakers push forward with efforts to curb the rights of queer and trans youth, authors who've written about gender expansive and trans identities say storytelling is crucial.

by Rina Torchinsky

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

March 31, 2022 4:00 AM

Chester Higgins' camera brings a 360-degree view to Black life

Acclaimed African American photographer Chester Higgins has made dozens of trips to Africa since the 1970s to document the continent's history and culture. Now 75, he has no plans on slowing down.

by Jon Kalish

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

March 30, 2022 10:08 AM

Creators on the Cusp: Mariko Tamaki makes and curates LGBTQ-focused graphic novels

Our Creators on the Cusp series brings you people revolutionizing the world of comics and graphic novels. Mariko Tamaki's won a slew of awards for graphic novels and has worked in mainstream comics.

by Etelka Lehoczky

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.