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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.

Kate DiCamillo, chronicler of the hard truths of youth

Kate DiCamillo, chronicler of the hard truths of youth

She's hugely popular and comes across as something of a smart aleck, but the children's author says she retains the timidity of her youth. She says that helps her connect to her young readers.
by Euan Kerr

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When your sister is a 'Serial Killer'

When your sister is a 'Serial Killer'

Oyinkan Braithwaite's wry, sly debut novel follows two sisters, dowdy Korede and gorgeous Ayoola -- who has a habit of killing her boyfriends. Korede cleans up her sister's messes, but for how long?
by Annalisa Quinn

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'Dance in America' aims to chronicle the art in the U.S.

'Dance in America' aims to chronicle the art in the U.S.

Mindy Aloff has attempted the nearly impossible task of collecting, in an anthology, the essays, excerpts, and asides that create a snapshot of the history of American dance.
by Genevieve Valentine

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The love story of C.S. Lewis and Joy Davidman

The love story of C.S. Lewis and Joy Davidman

There's been plenty written about C.S. Lewis -- but not about the woman he fell in love with, who influenced his work.
by Tracy Mumford

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Here's what college freshmen are reading

Here's what college freshmen are reading

Colleges across the U.S. assign books to introduce new ideas to incoming students. This year, colleges selected books on topics that ranged from climate change to race, fiction and non-fiction.
by Sara Ernst and Courtney Rozen

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'Extinctions' digs up buried memories and unacknowledged history

'Extinctions' digs up buried memories and unacknowledged history

The title Josephine Wilson's new novel refers to its protagonist, an elderly man who feels useless, extinct -- and whose journey is to find the means for growth and change within himself.
by Martha Anne Toll

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