The Thread® - Books and Literary News

The Thread from MPR News

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

Ask a Bookseller

Ask a Bookseller is a weekly series where The Thread 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 every Friday at 11 a.m., featuring conversations about books and other literary ideas. Listen to Big Books and Bold Ideas here.

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Sign up for The Thread newsletter to get reading recommendations from Kerri Miller and other bookworms around the MPR newsroom. Find reviews for new releases, as well as hidden gems you may have missed.

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. 

Tickets are now available for our 26th season. Join award-winning journalist and MPR News host Kerri Miller (and special guest host Catharine Richart) as they talk with authors including Stacey Abrams, Patricia Lockwood, Misty Copeland, John Grisham, and Kate Baer. 

When 'Your Heart Is A Muscle,' empathy is a revolutionary act
Writer Sunil Yapa says his father taught him to have a global perspective from a very young age. Yapa's new novel was inspired by explosive global trade protests that took place in Seattle in 1999.
'Hidden History' of Koch brothers traces their childhood and political rise
Jane Mayer, author of Dark Money, says the Kochs didn't grow up in "the usual cozy, all-American family." Their parents were away much of the time, and competition between the brothers was fierce.
The books every person should read
Esquire magazine came under fire for its list of "The 80 Best Books Every Man Should Read." This month, they're attempting to make amends with a new, more diverse list.
From Slate: Is history written about men, by men?
Slate Magazine analyzed more than 600 popular history books published last year, and confirmed a trend: The majority of authors in the field are men, and they're writing about other men.
'The Crooked House' is haunted, in a world that denies ghosts
Christobel Kent's literary thriller follows a young woman who reinvents herself -- even taking a new name -- after the mysterious murder of most of her family. But she can't escape the past forever.