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Talking Volumes

Talking Volumes, a collaboration between MPR News and the Minnesota Star Tribune, returns for a landmark 27th season at a new location, the O’Shaughnessy Auditorium at St. Catherine University in St. Paul.

Join us this fall for five special events with authors including Marlon James, Lucy Foley, Min Jin Lee, Emily St. John Mandel and Colson Whitehead. Tickets available now.

Talking Volumes: Stacey Abrams talks about democracy, the power of of reading and her new novel, 'Coded Justice'

Talking Volumes: Stacey Abrams talks about democracy, the power of of reading and her new novel, 'Coded Justice'

Stacey Abrams launched the 2025 season of Talking Volumes this week, with a warm, funny and inspiring conversation about how to make sense of this disorienting world without losing your humanity or hope.
by Kerri Miller and Kelly Gordon

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Talking Volumes: Peter Geye on ‘A Lesser Light’

Talking Volumes hit the road and headed to Duluth to talk with Minnesota author Peter Geye about his new novel, “A Lesser Light,” which is set along the North Shore of Lake Superior.
by Kerri Miller and Kelly Gordon

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Talking Volumes: Kate DiCamillo

Talking Volumes: Kate DiCamillo

When Kate DiCamillo comes to Talking Volumes, you know delight is forthcoming. It was a rousing, thoughtful and hopeful end to the celebratory 25th season.
by Kerri Miller and Kelly Gordon

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Talking Volumes: Louise Erdrich on ‘The Mighty Red’

Talking Volumes: Louise Erdrich on ‘The Mighty Red’

We could not celebrate 25 years of Talking Volumes without legendary Minnesota author Louise Erdrich. Her just-published new novel, “The Mighty Red,” is set in the Red River Valley where she grew up.
by Kerri Miller and Kelly Gordon

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Talking Volumes: Alice Hoffman on ’When We Flew Away’

Talking Volumes: Alice Hoffman on ’When We Flew Away’

Novelist Alice Hoffman’s new middle grade book, “When We Flew Away,” imagines Anne Frank’s life before her family was forced into hiding. She joined MPR News host Kerri Miller on stage for Talking Volumes to talk about the emotional arc of re-creating Frank’s too-short life.
by Kerri Miller and Kelly Gordon

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Talking Volumes: Edwidge Danticat on ‘We’re Alone’

Talking Volumes: Edwidge Danticat on ‘We’re Alone’

The 25th season of Talking Volumes kicked off with Haitian-born writer Edwidge Danticat, who joined host Kerri Miller on the stage of the Fitzgerald Theater to talk about her new book of essays, “We’re Alone.”
by Kerri Miller and Kelly Gordon

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Talking Volumes returns in 2024 for 25th season

Talking Volumes returns in 2024 for 25th season

MPR News and the Star Tribune proudly present the 25th season of Talking Volumes, hosted by Kerri Miller. Join us at the Fitzgerald Theater for four special events with renowned authors, celebrating our anniversary with a special $25 ticket price for MPR members and Star Tribune subscribers.
by MPR News Staff

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Talking Volumes: Leif Enger on ‘I Cheerfully Refuse’

Minnesota’s own Leif Enger joined MPR News host Kerri Miller in Red Wing this week for a Talking Volumes conversation about his new novel, “I Cheerfully Refuse.”
by Kerri Miller and Kelly Gordon

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Leif Enger’s ‘cheerful refusal’ to accept despair infuses his new dystopian adventure novel

Leif Enger’s ‘cheerful refusal’ to accept despair infuses his new dystopian adventure novel

Duluth author Leif Enger’s dystopian novel “I Cheerfully Refuse” is set in and around an alternative Duluth where many of the things Minnesotans take for granted have just stopped working. It’s an adventure story with a bass-playing housepainter at its center, who is forced to take off in a sailboat across Lake Superior after a brush with evil.
by Euan Kerr

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Talking Volumes: Margaret Renkl on 'The Comfort of Crows'

Talking Volumes: Margaret Renkl on 'The Comfort of Crows'

New York Times columnist and nature writer Margaret Renkl closed out the 2023 Talking Volumes season with meditations on the joys of a backyard oasis, the inevitable losses of a warming climate and how to live while holding both of those truths in tandem.
by Kerri Miller and Kelly Gordon

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