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.

June 21, 2016 4:53 AM

Terry McMillan's latest: Revisiting past loves, rediscovering yourself

In her new novel, "I Almost Forgot About You," McMillan's heroine confronts midlife malaise by reconnecting with men from her past.

by Karen Grigsby Bates

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June 21, 2016 1:00 AM

Fizzy 'Vinegar Girl' tames shrewishness to sparkle

Anne Tyler's latest is part of a series of Shakespeare plays-turned-novels; she's turned "The Taming of the Shrew" into a modern screwball comedy about an absent-minded scientist and his daughters.

by Heller McAlpin

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June 20, 2016 1:59 PM

On the trail of America's first serial killer

When a series of gruesome murders struck Austin, Tex., in the late 1800s, the term "serial killer" didn't exist yet.

by MPR News Staff and Tracy Mumford

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June 20, 2016 12:19 PM

Fish have feelings, too: the inner lives of our 'underwater cousins'

Jonathan Balcombe, author of What A Fish Knows, says that fish have a conscious awareness -- or "sentience" -- that allows them to experience pain, recognize individual humans and have memory.

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June 20, 2016 9:37 AM

Harry Potter Inc. hopes to recreate the magic with 'Cursed Child'

Lynn Neary wonders if the latest "Harry Potter story" (technically the script of a new play) merits the marketing push it's getting.

by Lynn Neary

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June 20, 2016 6:00 AM

Robert Stephens wants to know more

Robert Stephens, founder of Geek Squad, is as passionate about reading as he is about tech.

by MPR News Staff

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June 17, 2016 9:49 AM

Remembering Lois Duncan, the queen of teen suspense

The beloved author died suddenly Wednesday at the age of 82. Just a teen herself when she started writing, Lois Duncan sent chills down a generation of spines with books like "Down a Dark Hall."

by Petra Mayer

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June 16, 2016 1:04 PM

Super secret assassins and a mechanical arm make 'Regional Office' a literary thrill

Manuel Gonzales drops readers into the underground heart of a super secret organization of female assassins.

by MPR News Staff

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June 16, 2016 9:46 AM

'I'm Just A Person': Tig Notaro on her terrible year

Comedian Tig Notaro shot to fame in 2012, talking candidly onstage about having cancer. Now she's in remission, recently married and the author of a new memoir.