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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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.

January 31, 2016 12:00 AM

A sample of web comics to keep you clicking

Web comics have matured a lot in recent years. They're more confident and more willing to experiment with the medium. This sampler is a perfect introduction to the genre.

by Etelka Lehoczky

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January 30, 2016 9:56 AM

The American version of Hogwarts gets a name: Ilvermorny

For Americans who feel left out of Europe's wizarding tradition, J.K. Rowling has revealed a few details about the magical academy in North America.

by Tracy Mumford

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January 30, 2016 12:00 AM

Minnesota Book Awards: And the finalists are...

The finalists for the 28th annual Minnesota Book Awards have been announced. The winners will be named on April 16.

by Tracy Mumford

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January 28, 2016 2:39 AM

'Good On Paper' swings from scholarly to zany

Rachel Cantor's new novel tries to draw out the connections between love and scholarship in a tale of a frustrated translator looking for a new life. But it's occasionally too clever for its own good.

by Annalisa Quinn

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January 27, 2016 2:56 PM

How does it feel to be 'The Illegal'? New novel explores immigration

Lawrence Hill's new novel "The Illegal" follows a marathon runner forced to flee his home country for the fictional Freedom State, which readers will recognize as a doppelganger of the U.S. and western Europe.

by MPR News Staff

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January 27, 2016 2:00 PM

'Little House on the Prairie' goes Hollywood: Wilder movie in the works

Watch out, Walnut Grove. Laura Ingalls Wilder's tales of growing up on the frontier are set to be adapted into a film.

by Tracy Mumford

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January 26, 2016 1:21 PM

The novelists who are now writing superhero comics

Margaret Atwood has dreamed up a superhero who is part cat, part bird. Ta-Nehisi Coates, Michael Chabon and other prominent writers are also dabbling in comics.

by Tracy Mumford

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January 26, 2016 10:21 AM

New Beatrix Potter story uncovered after 100 years

Publisher Jo Hanks unearthed "The Tale of Kitty-in-Boots" in the archives of the Victoria and Albert Museum. It will be published this September, with original illustrations from Quentin Blake.

by Tracy Mumford

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January 26, 2016 8:36 AM

'All The Birds' overturns sci-fi and fantasy, gently

Charlie Jane Anders' debut novel follows a girl with magical powers and a technically brilliant boy, uneasy friends since childhood, who get caught up in an apocalyptic war between science and magic.

by Jason Heller