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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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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. 

Minnesota libraries offer contactless curbside pickup to serve readers

Minnesota libraries offer contactless curbside pickup to serve readers

Libraries across Minnesota remain closed to the public, but some have started offering contactless curbside pickup for patrons looking for a fresh influx of reading material.
by Emily Bright

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In Cesar Aira's latest, 'Artforum' has a magic beyond the page

In Cesar Aira's latest, 'Artforum' has a magic beyond the page

Aira's oddball new novella chronicles his love affair with the magazine “Artforum,” to which he ascribes almost magical qualities. It's a giddy, self-indulgent but delightful read.
by Kamil Ahsan

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'Meet Me At Midnight' for a lively summer romp

'Meet Me At Midnight' for a lively summer romp

None of us are likely to have a glorious summer this year — but crack open Jessica Pennington's new “Meet Me at Midnight” and follow the charming enemies-to-lovers story, and you'll get close.
by Alethea Kontis

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Set 1,500 years from now, 'The Last Emperox' is still pretty timely

Set 1,500 years from now, 'The Last Emperox' is still pretty timely

In the last installment of Scalzi's Interdependency trilogy, a ruler must fight to save a galactic empire threatened by greed, complacency and the collapse of vital resources. Sound familiar?
by Scott Simon

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In 'Mad, Bad & Dangerous,' romantic sleuths uncover a Byronic secret

In 'Mad, Bad & Dangerous,' romantic sleuths uncover a Byronic secret

Samira Ahmed's new novel bounces between two timelines, following a Muslim American art student in Paris, and the mysterious harem woman she believes inspired work by Lord Byron and his circle.
by Caitlyn Paxson

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5 easy art projects to enjoy during social distancing

5 easy art projects to enjoy during social distancing

Sarah Urist Green, creator of PBS' “The Art Assignment,” walks through five fun art projects that don't require fancy supplies or talent to create and enjoy.
by LA Johnson

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In 'How Much Of These Hills Is Gold,' this land is not your land

In 'How Much Of These Hills Is Gold,' this land is not your land

C Pam Zhang's debut novel follows a brother and sister, children of Chinese laborers, as the search the dusty hills of Gold Rush-era California for a place to bury their father's body.
by Annalisa Quinn

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Elizabeth's more serious sister Mary takes the spotlight in 'The Other Bennet Sister'

Elizabeth's more serious sister Mary takes the spotlight in 'The Other Bennet Sister'

Jane Austen's “Pride and Prejudice” follows Elizabeth Bennet's effort to marry. Now, Janice Hadlow has made the least of the sisters in that story, Mary, the star of her own novel of self-discovery.
by Mary Louise Kelly

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Stephen King is sorry you feel like you're stuck in a Stephen King novel

Stephen King is sorry you feel like you're stuck in a Stephen King novel

The horror writer says he understands why fans have said the COVID-19 pandemic feels like living inside one of his novels. King says he doesn't feel panic or terror, but rather, a "gnawing anxiety."
by Terry Gross

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