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The Thread® - Books and Literary 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.

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. 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. 

Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Sandra Day O'Connor, 'Sisters In Law'

Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Sandra Day O'Connor, 'Sisters In Law'

A new book details that the women were not personal friends, but they were strong allies on the Supreme Court bench, especially in the legal fight for women's equality.
by Nina Totenberg

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'The Wake' is an unlikely hit in an imaginary language

'The Wake' is an unlikely hit in an imaginary language

Paul Kingsnorth self-published 'The Wake,' his tale of the 11th-century Norman conquest of England, written in a pastiche of Old and modern English --- and was startled when it became a smash hit.
by Ari Shapiro

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Sampling new foods at the fair and on the page

Sampling new foods at the fair and on the page

The tantalizing, spice-infused descriptions of food in Richard Morais' novel, "The Hundred Foot Journey," will leave you hungry -- but the book will leave you satisfied.
by Kerri Miller

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North Minneapolis losing its lone bookstore

North Minneapolis losing its lone bookstore

The owners of Ancestry Books hope to hold readings and other events elsewhere.
by Peter Cox

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How schools are handling an 'overparenting' crisis

How schools are handling an 'overparenting' crisis

Two new books, "The Gift of Failure" and "How To Raise An Adult," argue that too many children are being given too much.

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Can you use that in a sentence? Dictionary adds new words

Can you use that in a sentence? Dictionary adds new words

Oxford Dictionaries added new words including "hangry," "rando" and "awesomesauce."

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'George' wants you to know: She's really Melissa

'George' wants you to know: She's really Melissa

One of this fall's most anticipated books is about a transgender fourth-grader. Publisher Scholastic is employing some of the same marketing techniques it used for megahits like 'The Hunger Games.'
by Neda Ulaby

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The Thread State Fair edition: Great literary characters

The Thread State Fair edition: Great literary characters

Live from the Minnesota State Fair, MPR News' Kerri Miller is joined by novelist Ben Percy for a discussion of what makes a great character.

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The girl who outlived her creator: Salander returns in 'Spider's Web'

The girl who outlived her creator: Salander returns in 'Spider's Web'

The fourth book in Stieg Larsson's bestselling Millennium series comes out internationally today -- but Larsson died in 2004, so his father and brother hired a new writer to continue the series
by Lynn Neary

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Book briefs: Is Scandinavian children's literature more risque than others?

Book briefs: Is Scandinavian children's literature more risque than others?

Every year, a new group of books lands on the American Library Association's Frequently Challenged Books list. A Scandinavian author argues that in her region, there are no taboos for children's books.
by Tracy Mumford

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