The Thread® - Books and Literary News

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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.

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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.

'My Year Abroad' is a fun excursion — just a little light on substance
Chang-rae Lee's new novel follows an aimless college student on his year overseas, taking readers from the New Jersey suburbs into some of the more luxurious reaches of Asian megacities.
Surveillance and local police: How technology is evolving faster than regulation
Journalist Jon Fasman says local police are frequently able to access very powerful surveillance tools with little oversight. He writes about the threat to privacy in “We See It All.”
A writer lost his singing voice, then discovered the 'gymnastics' of speech
New Yorker writer John Colapinto developed a vocal polyp when he began "wailing" with a rock group without proper warmup. His new book explores the human voice's physicality, frailty and feats .
Goade becomes first Native American to win Caldecott Medal
Illustrator Michaela Goade became the first Native American to win the prestigious Randolph Caldecott Medal for best children's picture story, cited for "We Are Water Protectors," a celebration of nature and condemnation of the "black snake" Dakota Access Pipeline.
International crime thrillers to crack open
Sure — we’re three weeks into 2021, but if you’re still catching up on books you missed in 2020, you’re in good company. MPR News host Kerri Miller shares three crime novels published outside of the U.S. that you should not miss.
'When You Trap A Tiger' and 'We Are Water Protectors' win top children's book honors
America's librarians award Tae Keller's “When You Trap A Tiger” the Newbery Medal and “We Are Water Protectors” illustrated by Michaela Goade and written by Carole Lindstrom won the Caldecott medal.