Stay Curious. Stay Connected.
MailNewsletters♡Donate Now

The Thread® - Books and Literary News

The Thread® is your source for book recommendations and other literary news.

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. 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.

Gorgeous colors and fraught feelings spill over in 'The Lie'

Gorgeous colors and fraught feelings spill over in 'The Lie'

Tommi Parrish's new graphic novel is about a seemingly inconsequential encounter -- old, estranged friends spend a few hours talking and drinking -- but it's bursting with style and emotion.
by Etelka Lehoczky

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

Show me!
Ursula K. Le Guin, whose novels plucked truth from high fantasy, dies at 88

Ursula K. Le Guin, whose novels plucked truth from high fantasy, dies at 88

The novelist, best known for works such as the Earthsea series and "The Left Hand of Darkness," used her fantastic realms to grapple with difficult themes. And she kept working until her death.
by Colin Dwyer

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

Show me!
The far out history of how hippie food spread across America

The far out history of how hippie food spread across America

Finding granola, hummus, organic produce and whole grains is easy now, but it wasn't always. Jonathan Kauffman's new book, "Hippie Food," explores the people and places that expanded America's palate.
by Menaka Wilhelm

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

Show me!
'The Friend' is no shaggy dog story

'The Friend' is no shaggy dog story

Sigrid Nunez's new novel follows a woman mourning the suicide of a close friend, mentor and fellow writer -- and the upheaval after she reluctantly takes in his huge, bereft (and smelly) Great Dane.
by Heller McAlpin

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

Show me!
Take a little Hitchcock and a touch of "Gone Girl"

Take a little Hitchcock and a touch of "Gone Girl"

"The Woman in the Window" is one of the rare debut novels to hit number one its first week on the market.
by Lynn Neary

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

Show me!
What does it really take to be a writer?

What does it really take to be a writer?

Bookseller Lacy Simons recommends a novel about a writer who decides the key to her success will be to never have children -- but her plan is challenged.
by Tracy Mumford

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

Show me!
What Minnesota's reading: The most popular library books

What Minnesota's reading: The most popular library books

Minnesota library patrons have a strong affinity for thrillers, but are also catching up on some of the most buzzed-about books of the last few years.
by Tracy Mumford

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

Show me!