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.

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. 

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. 

50 years ago, Bob Dylan electrified a decade with one concert
It's been 50 years since Bob Dylan strolled on stage at the Newport Folk Festival, plugged in an electric guitar, and infuriated his flock. Historian Elijah Wald says there's much more to the story.
Women's comics are surfing the crowd
It's no secret that women are getting more prominent in the world of comics. But some women are tired of waiting for mainstream attention: They're turning to crowdfunding to get their projects done.
Archive: Chuck Palahniuk on Talking Volumes
A rebroadcast of the 2011 discussion between MPR News host Kerri Miller and author Chuck Palahniuk about his most memorable trip to Paris, his biggest fear about red wine and his book, "Damned."
Shirley Jackson gets to the heart of the home in 'Let Me Tell You'
This collection of Shirley Jackson's early fiction, unpublished stories and personal essays is a delightfully uneasy mix of wry family observation and the chills her eerie later work is known for.
Doctorow wove fact and fiction to imagine America as it could be
He didn't care for journalism's austerities, but borrowed liberally from history to craft his books. The late, great novelist was a gentleman who spun untruths, in order to better get at what's true.