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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.

Robin DiAngelo on why it's so hard for white people to talk about racism

Robin DiAngelo on why it's so hard for white people to talk about racism

In a new book, writer and speaker Robin DiAngelo provides history and context to explain why many white people react emotionally and defensively when confronted with issues of race.
by Kerri Miller and Suzanne Pekow

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Scouting wildflowers in Minnesota's prairie

Scouting wildflowers in Minnesota's prairie

With summer in full swing, it's a great time to get out and see Minnesota's wildflowers in bloom -- especially on the prairie. Wildflower guide authors Phyllis Root and Kelly Povo have tips on some prime places to find them.
by Cathy Wurzer and Phil Picardi

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Confused in midlife? You're in good company with 'The Cost of Living'

Confused in midlife? You're in good company with 'The Cost of Living'

Deborah Levy thought her life would slow down at 50, but instead, it became "faster, unstable, unpredictable." Critic Maureen Corrigan says Levy's memoir is a "smart, slim meditation on womanhood."
by Maureen Corrigan

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'How To Be Famous' says: Don't hide your love away

'How To Be Famous' says: Don't hide your love away

Caitlin Moran's new novel, the second installment in the adventures of teen rock critic Dolly Wilde, is a dirty, jolly, book-length defense of teenage enthusiasm -- for music, sex and life in general.
by Annalisa Quinn

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Read 'The Cabin at the End of the World' and you won't sleep for a week

Read 'The Cabin at the End of the World' and you won't sleep for a week

Paul Tremblay's new novel is the best (and scariest) kind of horror -- the quiet, believable kind of story that doesn't involve possessed dolls or body doubles, and could absolutely happen to you.
by Jason Sheehan

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'The Shades' is both psychological study and taut thriller

'The Shades' is both psychological study and taut thriller

Evgenia Citkowitz's new novel follows a family attempting to put their lives back together after a loss. The Halls hope their newly purchased country retreat will help -- but things soon go awry.
by Michael Schaub

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Raising kids who want to read -- even during the summer

Raising kids who want to read -- even during the summer

Long summer days leave lots of time for books. What's the best way to encourage kids to take advantage of that time?
by Cory Turner

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In Sauk Centre, moving 'Main Street' to Main Street

In Sauk Centre, moving 'Main Street' to Main Street

Nearly 100 years after the publication of "Main Street," some residents are working to preserve Nobel Prize-winning writer Sinclair Lewis' place in the town's history.
by Kirsti Marohn

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In 'Summerland,' spies take secrets to the grave -- and beyond

In 'Summerland,' spies take secrets to the grave -- and beyond

Hannu Rajaniemi's new book imagines an alternate 1930s in which ghosts are real, the afterlife is real -- and the disembodied mind of V.I. Lenin is trying to expand Communism from beyond the grave.
by Jason Sheehan

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