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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.

'Fates and Furies': Two sides of the truth

'Fates and Furies': Two sides of the truth

Lauren Groff's new book tells the story of a marriage over 24 years, from two very different perspectives.
by MPR News Staff

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'Becoming Nicole' recounts one family's acceptance of their transgender child

'Becoming Nicole' recounts one family's acceptance of their transgender child

When Kelly and Wayne Maines adopted identical twin boys in 1997, they didn't anticipate raising one of their sons as a daughter. They tell their story, with author Amy Ellis Nutt, in 'Becoming Nicole.'

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Billy the Kid, 'the Holy Grail of Western Americana'

Billy the Kid, 'the Holy Grail of Western Americana'

A recently authenticated photograph of Billy the Kid could go for millions at auction. Kerri Miller picks a book that digs into the truth of the Western legend.
by Kerri Miller

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The deep, dark secret of R.L. Stine: 'I never planned to be scary'

The deep, dark secret of R.L. Stine: 'I never planned to be scary'

After more than 20 years of frights, Stine's 'Goosebumps' series is finally getting a big-screen adaptation, starring Jack Black. For Stine and Black, the key to the nightmare is in keeping things fun.
by Colin Dwyer

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Google's book-scanning project is legal, U.S. appeals court says

Google's book-scanning project is legal, U.S. appeals court says

A group of authors had sued over Google's effort to compile a digital library, claiming that it's costing them a lot of money in lost revenue. The court found the program complies with copyright law.
by Alina Selyukh

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Your weekend's 'booked': Catch the Twin Cities Book Festival

Your weekend's 'booked': Catch the Twin Cities Book Festival

The largest literary gathering in the upper Midwest comes to the Minnesota State Fairgrounds Saturday with a lineup of local stars and national names.
by Tracy Mumford

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Epic 'City on Fire' burns almost too brightly

Epic 'City on Fire' burns almost too brightly

Garth Risk Hallberg's massive debut novel is a headlong rush through New York in the 1970s; critic Jason Sheehan says Hallberg writes "like he's not sure anyone will ever give him a second chance."
by Jason Sheehan

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'The Rest Of Us' is apocalypse-adjacent

'The Rest Of Us' is apocalypse-adjacent

Patrick Ness' wry new young adult novel wonders what happens to the normal kids who have to make their lives in the margins of the explosive adventures depicted in mainstream young adult fantasy.
by Tasha Robinson

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