The Thread® - Books and Literary News

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

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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.

In 'Hurricane Season,' words swirl wild and dark
Fernanda Melchor's poetic, foul-mouthed new novel sits on the border between crime fiction and horror: A woman known as the Witch has been murdered, and her neighbors want to know who did it and why.
'A matter of common decency': What literature can teach us about epidemics
Authors explore questions of morality, evil, solidarity and survival in Albert Camus' “The Plague,” Geraldine Brooks' “Year of Wonders” and Karen Thompson Walker's “The Dreamers.”
With the 'I Am' books, you are a hero too
Our kids' books columnist Juanita Giles reports that, stuck at home with her family, she's turned to the I am series, by Brad Meltzer and Christopher Eliopoulos, for stories about relatable heroes.
Tomie DePaola, author of 'Strega Nona,' has died
The author and illustrator — who, by his own reckoning, worked on more than 270 titles — died Monday at age 85. Among his classics is the Caldecott winner “Strega Nona,” a seemingly ancient folk tale.
The Thread: Three spies you must meet
As we turn to books both new and familiar during this time of isolation, this week’s Thread post introduces you to three spies.
Authors, publishers condemn the 'National Emergency Library' as 'piracy'
Citing the coronavirus, the Internet Archive expanded its lending program for the digital copies of millions of books. But many writers and publishers say it is sharing their work without permission.
Samantha Irby: 'This is the glamorous life of a writer"
Irby's new essay collection is “Wow, No Thank You.” She says it was inspired by moving from Chicago to Kalamazoo and feeling like a fish out of water, with no friends and a strange house.
Uncovering the secrets of a fallen ruler in 'Empress Of Salt And Fortune'
Nghi Vo's new novel is poised at the end of one empire and the beginning of another, as a cleric and their talking-bird assistant set about uncovering the dangerous secrets of a forgotten palace.
From Louis Erdrich to Kurt Vonnegut, a reading list for social distancing
In a time of change and turmoil, many listeners are turning to books for entertainment and comfort. Listeners and book experts nominated their favorites during a recent conversation on MPR News with Kerri Miller.