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.

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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.

July 10, 2004 12:00 PM

Summer book picks for kids

Many children first discover the idea of reading for pleasure during the summer. There are no homework assignments, and the hot summer weather makes it an ideal time to grab a book and sit under a shady tree. The Red Balloon Bookshop in St. Paul has been helping parents and children find good summer reads for the past 20 years. MPR's Greta Cunningham met with co-owner Michele Cromer-Poire at her store to talk about some of her summer picks for kids.

by Greta Cunningham

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July 9, 2004 1:20 PM

Life on the Upper Mississippi

Minnesota author Patricia Hampl presents a literary view of the Upper Missippi. She reads from works by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Sinclair Lewis and even Henry David Thoreau, as well as her own musings on the great river. Music by pianist and Minnesota Public Radio favorite Dan Chouinard underscores the program.

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July 8, 2004 11:20 AM

Rock writers reconsider the classics

Think Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band is the most significant rock album ever? Critics take on the sacred cows of rock music in a new book.

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July 5, 2004 11:20 AM

George Washington's grand idea

Author Joel Achenbach delves into the world of George Washington. After winning the Revolutionary War, Washington decides to explore a water route to the West. On the way, he has run-ins with squatters on his land and meets frontiers people and Indians, while still keeping tabs on the fledgling government.

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June 29, 2004 1:11 PM

Macalester College statement on bookstore closing

Macalester College in St. Paul released the following statement regarding the closure of Ruminator Books, which is adjacent to the college campus.

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June 29, 2004 11:20 AM

A conversation with author Louise Erdrich

Beloved author Louise Erdrich's new book continues the stories of Ojibwe characters and catches them up in tales of revenge and passion.

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June 29, 2004 10:28 AM

Ruminator bookstore closing

Ruminator Books, the nationally-recognized independent bookstore on the Macalester College campus in St. Paul, is closing. After a series of financial problems and several attempts to find solutions, Macalester College has terminated the bookstore's lease. Book lovers say Minnesota is losing a piece of its literary history.

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June 23, 2004 2:00 PM

Coming to a bar near you --- performance literature!

Literary readings are sometimes perceived as somber, stuffy affairs, mainly attended by people in love with their own high IQs. In the Twin Cities, a group of writers called the Lit 6 Project is trying to broaden the audience for literature by injecting elements of performance, entertainment and unpredictability into the reading.

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June 22, 2004 11:20 AM

Inside the mind of a children's author

A prolific children's literature author says his writing inspiration comes from observations of everyday things, such as old buildings or animals in the yard.

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June 21, 2004 10:20 AM

How humans shaped the North Woods

From tribal burning to industrial logging, the actions of human beings have greatly impacted the natural environment. A new book chronicles the ways humans have changed the woods of northern Minnesota.

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