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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. 

A translators journey through Darfur

A translators journey through Darfur

In the summer of 2003 Daoud Hari fled as government helicopters and armed horsemen attacked his village in Darfur. Several family members died in the assault. He wanted the world to know what was happening.

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Remembering Jon Hassler

Remembering Jon Hassler

When Minnesota author Jon Hassler died last week at 74, colleagues of his remarked on the impact of his work, both as a writer and a teacher. Midday remembers Hassler in his own words, as we rebroadcast an interview he did with MPR in 1999. We also talk with two of Hassler's longtime friends.

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Jon Hassler, author of 'Staggerford,' dies

Jon Hassler, author of 'Staggerford,' dies

Famed Minnesota novelist Jon Hassler has died. Hassler, 74, had suffered from Parkinson disease. He had a string of novels to his name, many of them examining the intricacies of life in small Minnesota towns. As word spreads of his passing Hassler is being remembered both for his writing and his teaching.
by Euan Kerr

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Richard Price says he writes about trouble

Richard Price says he writes about trouble

Richard Price is acknowledged as one of the great masters of capturing the nuances of street life. His new novel "Lush Life" explores the ripple effect of a single gunshot across New York's Lower East Side.
by Euan Kerr

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High schooler reads Poetry Out Loud

High schooler reads Poetry Out Loud

MPR's Tom Crann talks to Mary Hu, Minnesota's 2008 Poetry Out Loud national recitation contest winner.

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Midmorning's Book List

Midmorning's Book List

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A son's addiction, a father's agony

A son's addiction, a father's agony

A child's addiction transforms a family. Two new memoirs with different perspectives show how a child's meth habit nearly destroyed a son and almost devastated his father.

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Novel mixes horses, riders, and encroaching wealth

Novel mixes horses, riders, and encroaching wealth

When Aryn Kyle began writing about a girl growing up at a Montana riding school, she meant it to be a short story. Yet, when she came back to it a few years later, it became her best-selling novel "The God of Animals."

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What to read

What to read

Two book lovers talk about what they're reading now, the books that have been praised and overlooked, and how to keep books relevant in a digital age.

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Comic novelist combines design with infamous experiments

Comic novelist combines design with infamous experiments

Graphic designer Chip Kidd is one of the most sought-after book cover designers in the country. He's also a novelist, and his latest book, "The Learners," deals with the infamous Milgram experiments.
by Euan Kerr

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