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.

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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 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.

'Should I sacrifice my life to live half American?'
Historian Matthew Delmont paints a vivid and painful picture of life for Black Americans during World War II in his new book, “Half American.” Even as Black service members fought to win the war overseas, they couldn’t win the war of equality at home.
Bao Phi on his watching his award winning children's book come to the stage in Hopkins
Bao Phi’s children’s book “In a Different Pond” won the Caldecott Medal in 2018 and has now been adapted for theater and is currently playing at Stages Theatre in Hopkins. Bao Phi talks with host Cathy Wurzer about his work and watching it come alive on stage.
'In the Mouth of the Wolf' examines the murder of a Mexican investigative reporter
Since 2000, more than 150 journalists have been killed in Mexico. Among them is Regina Martinez, a veteran journalist reporting on government corruption and human rights abuses in Veracruz state.
Lincoln prioritized democracy over his political future. A new biography explains why
Presidential historian Jon Meacham speaks with NPR about his new biography, ”And There Was Light: Abraham Lincoln and the American Struggle.” It examines Lincoln's actions as well as motivations.