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.

Mexican American superhero saves Ukrainian civilians in comic book issue
Fed up with Mexico's non-interventionist policy after Russia invaded Ukraine, Héctor Rodríguez sends his Mexican American superhero to Mariupol in the latest issue of the series.
From the archives: Writer Max Porter on 'Grief is the Thing with Feathers'
This Friday, MPR News host Kerri Miller will talk with renowned grief expert and neuroscientist Mary-Frances O'Connor about happens in our brains when we grieve. But novels teach us just as much as science. In anticipation of the coming show, enjoy this one from the 2016 archives, when Miller talked with writer Max Porter about his debut novel, “Grief is the Thing with Feathers.”
Efforts to ban books jumped an 'unprecedented' four-fold in 2021, ALA report says
The American Library Association says libraries faced the highest number of book challenges since they started tracking in 2000. Maia Kobabe's Gender Queer topped their list of most challenged books.
Ask a Bookseller: 'Island Queen' celebrates an ambitious Black woman entrepreneur from history
If you like the energy and ambition of the musical "Hamilton," Lelia Nebeker of One More Page Books in Arlington, Va., recommends you check out the novel “Island Queen” by Vanessa Riley.
Kelly Weill on why conspiracy theories are spreading faster than ever
Despite centuries of evidence pointing otherwise, there are still people who believe the Earth is flat — and their numbers are growing, thanks to social media and a reinvigorated culture of conspiratorial thinking. Journalist Kelly Weill has studied the flat Earth movement for years. Her new book is “Off the Edge: Flat Earthers, Conspiracy Culture, and Why People Will Believe Anything.”
These kids' authors are telling the stories of trans youth. Book bans won't stop them
As lawmakers push forward with efforts to curb the rights of queer and trans youth, authors who've written about gender expansive and trans identities say storytelling is crucial.