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The Thread® - Books and Literary News

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

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. 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.

Archive: Chuck Palahniuk on Talking Volumes

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."

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In 'Wondering Who You Are,' a man wakes up and doesn't know his wife

In 'Wondering Who You Are,' a man wakes up and doesn't know his wife

Sonya Lea and her husband Richard Bandy had been married for more than 20 years before an operation for a rare cancer cleared most of his memories.

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'Cartel' dives deep into Mexico's drug wars

'Cartel' dives deep into Mexico's drug wars

Life imitates art in the case of Don Winslow's novel about an escaped Mexican drug lord.
by Kerri Miller

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Shirley Jackson gets to the heart of the home in 'Let Me Tell You'

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This collection of Shirley Jackson's early fiction, unpublished stories and personal essays is a delightfully uneasy mix of wry family observation and the chills her eerie later work is known for.
by Genevieve Valentine

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Doctorow wove fact and fiction to imagine America as it could be

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.
by Lynn Neary

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Book briefs: Take a literary road trip this summer

Book briefs: Take a literary road trip this summer

Richard Kreitner has meticulously mapped out 12 great road trips from American non-fiction. Retrace the steps of Mark Twain, Jack Kerouac, Cheryl Strayed and more.
by Tracy Mumford

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Paddle out to The Floating Library

Paddle out to The Floating Library

You won't need a library card to visit this one-of-a-kind spot, but you will need a boat.
by Tracy Mumford

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Literary mysteries: The best-selling books of all time

Literary mysteries: The best-selling books of all time

Harper Lee's "Go Set a Watchman" sold more than a million copies in its first week, but it's got a long way to go to crack the all-time bestsellers list.
by Tracy Mumford

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The test that can look into a child's (reading) future

The test that can look into a child's (reading) future

Neurobiologist Nina Kraus believes she and her team at Northwestern University have found a way -- a half-hour test -- to predict kids' literacy skill long before they're old enough to begin reading.
by Cory Turner

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The waters of 'Lagoon' are choppy but enthralling

The waters of 'Lagoon' are choppy but enthralling

Nnedi Okorafor's new book imagines an alien landing in the waters just off Lagos, Nigeria. Reviewer Amal El-Mohtar calls it chaotic and beautiful, though occasionally dizzyingly difficult to read.
by Amal El-Mohtar

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