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.

April 20, 2016 6:00 PM

Forget Fabio: A modern view of romance novels

Romance novels are a billion-dollar industry, yet the books are widely derided as "un-literary." A new documentary explores the women who write them, the women who read them and where the stereotypes fall short.

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!

April 19, 2016 12:35 PM

A tender and witty view of life on a family farm

Jane Hamilton's new novel, "The Excellent Lombards," explores life on a family-run apple orchard.

by MPR News Staff

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!

April 19, 2016 12:02 PM

Don't read these: The most frequently challenged books of 2015

The American Library Association released its annual list of books that people have attempted to ban from schools and libraries.

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!

April 19, 2016 9:40 AM

The lonely side of James Brown

When James McBride, a National Book Award winner for his fiction, decided to write an entire book about James Brown, he wanted to push beyond the hype and racism he says haunts Brown's legacy.

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!

April 18, 2016 2:35 PM

2016 Pulitzer Prize winners in literature: The Thread interviews

The 2016 Pulitzer Prize winners were announced this afternoon. Catch up with the award-winning books.

by MPR News Staff

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!

April 18, 2016 12:51 PM

Battling depression with 'Reasons to Stay Alive'

"It's the biggest cliché in the world to talk about time healing, but it's also the truest," said Matt Haig. His new book details his struggles with depression.

by MPR News Staff

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!

April 18, 2016 10:55 AM

Roman Mars on wanting to want less

On the first episode of The Thread podcast, Roman Mars talks about the fictional character he hated so much, it drove him a new direction.

by MPR News Staff

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!

April 18, 2016 10:12 AM

Horrors pile up quietly in 'The Other Slavery'

Andrés Reséndez' new book is a careful and scholarly examination of the enslavement of indigenous people in the Americas. It lays bare a shameful chapter of history, with a clear line to the present.

by Genevieve Valentine