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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.

Woodward book puts White House back in damage-control mode

Woodward book puts White House back in damage-control mode

The book describes former aides calling President Trump an "idiot" and a "liar," disparaging his judgment and claiming they plucked papers off his desk to prevent him from withdrawing from a pair of trade agreements.
by The Associated Press

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From poverty to rocket scientist to CEO, a Girl Scout's inspiring story

From poverty to rocket scientist to CEO, a Girl Scout's inspiring story

When she was a Brownie, Sylvia Acevedo was inspired to earn her science badge. In her new memoir, the Girl Scouts CEO says this experience led directly to her career at NASA.
by Elissa Nadworny

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'Fashion Climbing' is a lesson in perseverance

'Fashion Climbing' is a lesson in perseverance

Written with more enthusiasm than literary panache, fashion and society photographer Bill Cunningham's memoir, discovered after his death, is a charming ode to being true to oneself.
by Heller McAlpin

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Viola Davis brings a new 'Corduroy' book to bear

Viola Davis brings a new 'Corduroy' book to bear

Inspired by her daughter, the Emmy, Tony and Oscar-winning actress has written a picture book. "Corduroy Takes a Bow" continues the adventures of a curious teddy bear and his young friend Lisa.
by David Greene

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In 'Small Animals,' a mom grapples with parenting in an 'age of fear'

In 'Small Animals,' a mom grapples with parenting in an 'age of fear'

In 2011, Kim Brooks intentionally left her 4-year-old in a car as she ran into a Target. In her new book, she attempts to reckon with the consequences of her decision, and parenting in today's world.
by Mariya Karimjee

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Drag Queen Story Hour sparks protests in conservative towns

Drag Queen Story Hour sparks protests in conservative towns

Drag Queen Story Hours have been held at libraries or book stores in big cities including Los Angeles, Chicago, New York and the Twin Cities. In some smaller communities, however, the programs have sparked protests from conservative and religious groups.
by Associated Press

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'Rush': The other Founding Father from Philadelphia named Benjamin

'Rush': The other Founding Father from Philadelphia named Benjamin

Stephen Fried's biography argues that Benjamin Rush -- a pioneering physician, writer and a signatory to the Declaration of Independence -- belongs on the historical tier of Benjamin Franklin.
by Melissa Block

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'Dog Symphony' is less a novel than a mood given form

'Dog Symphony' is less a novel than a mood given form

Sam Munson has written a weird book that doesn't try to hide its weirdness. It's nominally about a professor of prison architecture visiting a conference in Buenos Aires -- but then there are the dogs.
by Jason Sheehan

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Bob Dylan, Woody Guthrie and the history of protest

Bob Dylan, Woody Guthrie and the history of protest

"More than a history of music, this is actually a history of the United States, and of protest in the early twentieth century," says bookseller Ruth Hulbert.
by Tracy Mumford

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An aunt's memoir: Remembering the drowned Syrian boy on the beach

An aunt's memoir: Remembering the drowned Syrian boy on the beach

Tima Kurdi has written a book that tells the story of the family's attempt to cross from Turkey to Greece in a rubber boat -- and the struggle to make sense of the tragedy.
by Diane Cole

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