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 back for its 25th season. 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. Buy tickets here.

David Pogue on ‘How to Prepare for Climate Change’
Record heat and warming oceans mean life on planet Earth is changing. Science and technology writer David Pogue outlined the scale of those changes and offers advice for how humans can adjust. 
To understand police reform, law professor volunteered to join the force
For four years, Rosa Brooks carried a badge and a gun and worked a minimum of 24 hours a month for the D.C. police — all on a voluntary basis. She writes about her experiences in “Tangled Up in Blue.”
A boy named 'Milo' reminds us to choose imagination over impressions
Milo and his big sister take a long subway ride to visit their mother, who is incarcerated, in the latest collaboration from award-winning picture book duo Matt de la Peña and Christian Robinson.
Talking Volumes: Talking Race 2021 season guide
Minnesota Public Radio and the Star Tribune are proud to announce a special Talking Volumes series of virtual events centered around the topic of race in America. Join MPR News journalists Kerri Miller and Brandt Williams as they host engaging conversations with authors throughout the month of March.
Let this 'Wild Rain' sweep you away
The latest from Beverly Jenkins revisits an old favorite spot — the town of Paradise, Wy., where Spring Rain Lee (sister of previous hero Colton Lee) meets a man who may upend her independent life.
'Between Two Kingdoms' tells a story of survival — and of a journey to learn to live
A new book by Suleika Jaouad, author of the column "Life, Interrupted," encompasses a less familiar tale of what it's like to survive cancer and have to figure out how to live again in its aftermath.