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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.

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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.

American novelist Philip Roth, author of 'Portnoy's Complaint,' dies at 85

American novelist Philip Roth, author of 'Portnoy's Complaint,' dies at 85

Roth, one of the most influential novelists of the later part of the 20th century, is the author of "American Pastoral," which won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, and 1969's "Portnoy's Complaint."
by Scott Neuman

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Rest in peace, Philip Roth, and thank you

Rest in peace, Philip Roth, and thank you

NPR's Susan Stamberg shares her favorite conversation with the writer, and what she did after she heard the news of his death.
by Susan Stamberg

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Murder is minimal in spooky 'Sabrina'

Murder is minimal in spooky 'Sabrina'

Graphic novelist Nick Drnaso's new book chronicles the aftermath of a murder in tightly-controlled, almost miserly panels that still manage to convey the horror of a senseless killing.
by Etelka Lehoczky

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In 'Facts and Fears,' ex-spy boss Clapper comes in from the cold, badly chilled

In 'Facts and Fears,' ex-spy boss Clapper comes in from the cold, badly chilled

Former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper recalls a lifetime of service in the spy business as he perceives Washington, D.C., crumbling around him.

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The vast and violent rural Northwest, in 'Come West And See'

The vast and violent rural Northwest, in 'Come West And See'

Maxim Loskutoff's collection of short stories picks at the tensions between city and country among everyday Westerners -- who find themselves living among heavily-armed separatist militias.
by Ari Shapiro

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The string quartet as chosen family in 'The Ensemble'

The string quartet as chosen family in 'The Ensemble'

In her debut novel, former cellist Aja Gabel follows four musicians as they come together and entertain ambitions to strike out on their own -- on and off stage.

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'A good, old-fashioned page turner' from Jennifer Egan

'A good, old-fashioned page turner' from Jennifer Egan

Bookseller Linda Kass says you "always learn something in a Jennifer Egan novel." In Egan's latest, the subjects range from searching for bodies underwater to running a nightclub.
by Tracy Mumford

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