The Thread® - Books and Literary News

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

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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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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.

November 12, 2015 12:42 PM

Unearthed photos: Downtown Minneapolis in the 1970s

Mike Evangelist spent his teenage years photographing downtown Minneapolis. As he grew up, he tucked all of his film away in a closet -- until now.

by Tracy Mumford

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November 12, 2015 11:06 AM

The entire Soviet Union fits into 'The Big Green Tent'

Ludmila Ulitskaya's new novel follows three childhood friends in the years after Stalin's death -- and the dozens of characters their lives intersect with -- in a masterpiece of detail and ambition.

by Colin Dwyer

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November 12, 2015 9:37 AM

The 'Amazing Fantastic Incredible' life of Stan Lee, now in comic form

Stan Lee is a comic book legend. He's the writer behind Spider-man, the Incredible Hulk and Iron Man. Now, the 92-year-old talks about his own super-heroic life.

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November 11, 2015 5:34 PM

U exhibit celebrates 41 years of Graywolf Press

The archives of the Minnesota-based publishing house document how the book business has changed, and how it hasn't.

by Euan Kerr

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November 11, 2015 2:11 PM

Why eating out alone doesn't have to be lonely

More Americans are eating alone -- at restaurants and at home. Writer Simran Sethi argues in a new book that eating alone can be a courageous act that deepens appreciation of food and place.

by Jill Neimark

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