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The Thread® - Books and Literary News

The Thread® is your source for book recommendations and other literary news.

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. Sam Stroozas rounds up local events and Minnesota book news you may have missed.

Ask a Bookseller

Ask a Bookseller is a weekly series where host Emily Bright 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 and produced by Kelly Gordon every Friday at 11 a.m., featuring conversations about books and other literary ideas. Listen to Big Books and Bold Ideas here.

Talking Volumes

Talking Volumes is an annual event series featuring notable authors in conversation about their new books. Presented by MPR News and The Minnesota Star Tribune.

Ask a Bookseller: 'Milk Fed,' a novel about self-discovery — and frozen yogurt

Ask a Bookseller: 'Milk Fed,' a novel about self-discovery — and frozen yogurt

This week’s recommendation comes from Montpelier, Vt., where Claire Benedict is co-owner of Bear Pond Books. Benedict says she devoured the novel “Milk Fed” by Melissa Broder — an appropriate description for a novel that is about appetites and what sustains us — also, lots of frozen yogurt. 
by Emily Bright

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'The Lost Apothecary' is a poisonously good read

'The Lost Apothecary' is a poisonously good read

Sarah Penner's new novel, set both now and in 18th century London, follows a woman who uncovers a mystery involving an apothecary shop that helped women get rid of troublesome or abusive men.
by Denny S. Bryce

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Talking Volumes: A conversation with Reginald Dwayne Betts

Talking Volumes: A conversation with Reginald Dwayne Betts

Reginald Dwayne Betts animates the ideals of justice, integrity and equity in his work as both an attorney and a poet. He went to prison as a teenager for carjacking and later went to Yale to study law. He joined MPR News host Kerri Miller on the virtual Talking Volumes stage for a conversation about race, criminal justice and reading.
by Kerri Miller

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The stories in 'Reality' have some bite

The stories in 'Reality' have some bite

John Lanchester's sharp new story collection considers the dark side of technology, from smartphones to selfie sticks. But you don't have to be a Luddite to appreciate this smart, scary book.
by Michael Schaub

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'Maniac' recounts deadliest school mass murder in American history

'Maniac' recounts deadliest school mass murder in American history

Author Harold Schechter details the 1927 school bombing in Bath Township, Mich., that killed 38 children and six adults. Days later, Charles Lindbergh's famous transatlantic flight captured headlines.
by Michael Schaub

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Books hold the key to 'The Postscript Murders'

Books hold the key to 'The Postscript Murders'

The woman who turns up dead at the start of Elly Griffiths' new novel billed herself as a "murder consultant" for writers. Griffiths says she was inspired by her aunt, who enjoys thinking up murders.
by Mary Louise Kelly

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Are we failing boys in America?

Are we failing boys in America?

In her searing new book, investigative journalist Emma Brown says boys in America face a crisis of emotional and mental health. Can we fix the system that is failing them? 
by Kerri Miller and Kelly Gordon

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'Phantom Tollbooth' author Norton Juster dies at 91

'Phantom Tollbooth' author Norton Juster dies at 91

The author of the beloved children's book reunited with its illustrator for the more recent “The Odious Ogre.” Juster was also an architect and he died due to complications from a recent stroke.
by Andrew Limbong

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The weird world of 'Cosmogony' is immensely inviting

The weird world of 'Cosmogony' is immensely inviting

In her first collection, Lucy Ives proves herself — and we mean this as a compliment — a real literary weirdo. Her stories are strange without ever performing strangeness, baffling yet precise.
by Lily Meyer

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Inside the fight for the right to die: Logistical and ethical challenges

Inside the fight for the right to die: Logistical and ethical challenges

Katie Engelhart explores the complexity of physician-assisted death in the book The Inevitable. She says patients seeking to end their own lives sometimes resort to veterinary drugs from overseas.
by Terry Gross

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