The Thread® - Books and Literary News

The Thread from MPR 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.

Big Books and Bold Ideas

Big Books and Bold Ideas is a weekly series hosted by Kerri Miller every Friday at 11 a.m., featuring conversations about books and other literary ideas. Listen to Big Books and Bold Ideas here.

Sign Up for The Thread® Newsletter

Sign up for The Thread newsletter to get reading recommendations from Kerri Miller and other bookworms around the MPR newsroom. Find reviews for new releases, as well as hidden gems you may have missed.

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. 

Tickets are now available for our 26th season. Join award-winning journalist and MPR News host Kerri Miller (and special guest host Catharine Richart) as they talk with authors including Stacey Abrams, Patricia Lockwood, Misty Copeland, John Grisham, and Kate Baer. 

Poetry Friday: Three doses
To celebrate National Poetry Month, The Thread is showcasing three poems from local independent publishing houses every Friday.
Asylum-seeking student says nothing can stand between him and poetry
Allan Monga of Portland, Maine recently won the right to compete in the national Poetry Out Loud festival. He was initially barred because he's an asylum seeker and not a U.S. citizen.
Autonomous weapons would take warfare to a new domain, without humans
Former special operations agent Paul Scharre helped create U.S. military guidelines on autonomous weapons. His new book Army of None, looks at the advances in technology, and the questions they raise.
'Bring The War Home' shows 'lone wolf' terrorists are really part of a pack
Kathleen Belew's new book explores the impact of the Vietnam War on America's white power movement; Belew says that movement was behind a lot of domestic terror attacks attributed to "lone wolves."