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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. 

Frostbeard candles put the 'lit' in 'literature'

Frostbeard candles put the 'lit' in 'literature'

Candlemakers Roxie and Tom Lubanovic craft scented candles based on their favorite books. Sherlock Holmes smells of tobacco and rain, while the Shire smells of clover and oakmoss.
by Tracy Mumford

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Philip Glass on legacy: 'The future ... it's all around us'

Philip Glass on legacy: 'The future ... it's all around us'

For the composer, life is how the past and the future connect. Glass' new memoir, Words Without Music, looks back on his childhood, travels through Asia and when his music provoked violence.

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Tracing the roots of 'The Brothers' and the Boston Marathon bombing

Tracing the roots of 'The Brothers' and the Boston Marathon bombing

As the jurors start deliberations Tuesday whether to convict Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, Masha Gessen says there are still some "gaping holes" in the case. Her new book is "The Brothers."

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Author Kevin Carey on why college as we know it must end

Author Kevin Carey on why college as we know it must end

Author Kevin Carey argues that the days of four-year degrees, all-things-to-all-people hybrid universities and ineffective instruction must end.

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When 12,000 writers come to town

When 12,000 writers come to town

The continent's largest literary conference is coming to Minneapolis, which means Literary Death Matches and Prince-inspired poetry.
by Tracy Mumford

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Why does the war on drugs persist?

Why does the war on drugs persist?

Drug prohibition, it would seem, hasn't been any more successful than our nation's failed experiment to ban alcohol early in the 20th century.
by Alva Noë

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Artist goes outside the lines with coloring books for grown-ups

Artist goes outside the lines with coloring books for grown-ups

When Johanna Basford first told her publisher she wanted to draw books for adults -- well, she says, "You can imagine how quiet they were."

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'Game of Thrones' author releases chapter from next book

'Game of Thrones' author releases chapter from next book

George R.R. Martin gave fans a sneak peek of what's next in the fantasy series when he posted the first chapter of the forthcoming book on his website.
by The Associated Press

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