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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.

Girls' Life vs. Boys' Life? Magazine covers spark an uproar

Girls' Life vs. Boys' Life? Magazine covers spark an uproar

When graphic designer Katherine Young saw the cover comparison, she couldn't believe it. Then, she set out to fix it.
by Tracy Mumford

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'The Wonder' is a hard-to-believe talk of belief

'The Wonder' is a hard-to-believe talk of belief

Emma Donoghue's latest follows a nurse in 19th century Ireland who agrees to monitor a famed fasting girl. But both the unsympathetic nurse and the credulous villagers are hard to like or understand.
by Michael Schaub

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'Born to Run' is a 500-page Springsteen show

'Born to Run' is a 500-page Springsteen show

Can't see The Boss in concert? Pick up his new memoir, which begins with 7-year-old Springsteen watching Elvis on TV. From $3-a-night shows to swooning stadiums, it's a wild and well-written ride.
by Barbara J. King

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Food for thought: 10 restaurants that shaped America

Food for thought: 10 restaurants that shaped America

A Yale historian's new book explores America's changing tastes, and what they say about our culture -- from class mobility to civil rights to women's changing status.
by Neda Ulaby

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Author: 'Hockey Strong' about a special kind of strength

Minnesota-based writer Todd Smith says hockey players are a lot tougher than other athletes.

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Love shifts the self in 'The Lesser Bohemians'

Love shifts the self in 'The Lesser Bohemians'

Eimear McBride's latest follows a young drama student who comes to London and falls for an older man. Her live, wriggling language makes a beautiful account of the ways the self is built and rebuilt.
by Annalisa Quinn

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'Into the Sun': Tracing the ripples of the war in Afghanistan

'Into the Sun': Tracing the ripples of the war in Afghanistan

Deni Ellis Bechard's new novel drops readers into Kabul, where a car bomb kills three expats working in the city. The friend they leave behind attempts to unravel the forces that caused their death.
by MPR News Staff

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'Arab of the Future 2' continues risky truth-telling

'Arab of the Future 2' continues risky truth-telling

Cartoonist Riad Sattouf continues his scathing memoir of his childhood in Syria and Libya. Just as in the first volume, his disgust for the oddities and outrages around him is palpable on the page.
by Etelka Lehoczky

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Can reading boost your empathy? Depends on what you read, study says

Can reading boost your empathy? Depends on what you read, study says

A new study claims that reading literary fiction can increase people's ability to understand others' emotions. But what about reading genre fiction?
by Tracy Mumford

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'Playing Dead': Can you fake your death in the 21st century?

'Playing Dead': Can you fake your death in the 21st century?

Elizabeth Greenwood dove deep into the world of death fraud while researching her book. She even managed to obtain an "up to snuff" death certificate from the Philippines.
by MPR News Staff

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