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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. 

Talking Volumes: Jonathan Franzen

Talking Volumes: Jonathan Franzen

Jonathan Franzen joined Kerri Miller for a Talking Volumes conversation about his new book "Freedom." Recorded at the Fitzgerald Theater on September 21st, 2010.

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Super sad satire from writer Gary Shteyngart

Super sad satire from writer Gary Shteyngart

Novelist Gary Shteyngart's latest work is a comic love story set in a future America on the verge of collapse, where books no longer exist and people spend their time watching videos on iPhone-like devices. The author says it reflects a culture in which technology has outpaced our ability to process it.

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Author Per Petterson on writing

Author Per Petterson on writing

The English translation of Per Petterson's "Out Stealing Horses" won a prestigious international award and helped fuel the public's passion for Nordic literature. His latest novel deals with a man's attempt to reconnect with his dying mother.

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Newsmaker: Oprah and Jonathan Franzen make nice

Newsmaker: Oprah and Jonathan Franzen make nice

Jonathan Franzen raised eyebrows in 2001 when he dismissed the selection of his novel "The Corrections" by the Oprah Winfrey Book Club and made comments that led the talk show host to revoke her invitation. She's announcing today that Franzen's new novel, "Freedom," will be her next book club pick.

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The father of cyberpunk

The father of cyberpunk

In his 1984 novel "Neuromancer," author William Gibson envisioned a technological future that looks a lot like the present. He joins Midmorning to talk about his new novel and how his concept of the future has changed.

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From the page to the stage

From the page to the stage

The Guthrie Theater brings Louise Erdrich's novel "The Master Butchers Singing Club" to the stage this month. The show describes the intersecting lives of a German immigrant and butcher and a sideshow performer as they settle into the small town of Argus, North Dakota.

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In search of Utopia

In search of Utopia

A long-standing fascination with utopian thought led writer J.C. Hallman on a journey to six modern utopian projects. In the process, he found in these communities a desire to make things better that he believes is missing in much of modern-day America.

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The language of apes

The language of apes

When writer Sara Gruen went to see the work being done at Great Ape Trust, an Iowa research center where scientists are studying how apes acquire and understand language, she came away transformed. Her time there inspired the new novel "The Ape House."

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Author lets readers choose what to do with lottery millions

Author lets readers choose what to do with lottery millions

Most of us have played the "what would I do if I won the lottery" game. Of course, the laws of probability mean few of us will get to play the game for real. But a new book from Minneapolis writer Heather McElhatton can give us a little closer whiff of those millions.
by Euan Kerr

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