The Thread® - Books and 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.

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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.

April 13, 2017 10:34 AM

All roads lead back to Florida in 'Sunshine State'

Sarah Gerard's lucid, atmospheric essay collection draws on her experiences growing up in Florida for a candid memoir that mixes first-person memories with thoughtful big-picture reporting.

by Jason Heller

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April 13, 2017 9:11 AM

File this under nostalgia: New book pays tribute to the library card catalog

Today, people use the antique wooden cabinets to store their knick-knacks. But these card catalogs once held the keys to a world of information. A new Library of Congress book explores their history.

by Andrew Limbong

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April 13, 2017 6:42 AM

File this under nostalgia: New book pays tribute to the library card catalog

Today, people use the antique wooden cabinets to store their knick-knacks. But these card catalogs once held the keys to a world of information. A new Library of Congress book explores their history.

by Andrew Limbong

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April 12, 2017 5:37 PM

Trump's win changed the game for publishers on the left and the right

For years, conservative publishers thrived as their readers flocked to books aimed directly at taking down the party in power. Now, with Republicans in control, they have to rethink their strategy.

by Lynn Neary

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April 12, 2017 11:25 AM

The Thread Live: 2017 authors announced

The Thread's 2017 season of author interviews has been announced: Four writers will bring discussions of identity, equality, friendship, hardship and buried history to the Fitzgerald Theater in St. Paul

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April 12, 2017 10:49 AM

'Hidden Figures' author to write two more books on African-Americans overlooked by historians

Margot Lee Shetterly's next book will look at life in mid-20th century Baltimore.

by Associated Press

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April 12, 2017 10:23 AM

Nearly 40 years later, Jonestown offers a lesson in demagoguery

In 1978, more than 900 followers of the Rev. Jim Jones committed mass suicide in Guyana. In his new book, 'The Road to Jonestown,' journalist Jeff Guinn details how Jones captivated so many.

by Terry Gross

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April 11, 2017 12:36 PM

Long-buried secrets, scampering dreams and a cat that talks: 'Eartha'

In Cathy Malkasian's gorgeous, melancholic graphic novel, a woman travels to a distant city to learn why its residents have stopped dreaming.

by Glen Weldon

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April 11, 2017 9:59 AM

'Where the Water Goes' is engaging -- and also scary

In 'Where the Water Goes,' David Owen uses the history of the Colorado River to lay out the immense complexity of America's water situation, reminding us that both water and time are finite resources.

by Genevieve Valentine