Ask a Bookseller

Click here. Of course, for the week of Halloween, we had to talk about a book that keeps you looking over your shoulder. Hunter Gillum of Beaverdale Books in Des Moines, Iowa, recommends the mystery/crime novel “Scrap” by Calla Henkel. The novel focuses on Esther Ray, a multimedia artist with a true-crime podcast obsession. Recently dumped, she accepts a scrapbooking job from wealthy Naomi Duncan....

On The Thread’s Ask a Bookseller series, we talk to independent booksellers all over the country to find out what books they’re most excited about right now.   Do you crave all things cozy once the autumn leaves start to turn? Ellie Petres of The Book Garden in Bountiful, Utah , recommends a feel-good romantasy read, perfect for fans of “Legends and Lattes.” It’s called “The Spellshop” by Sarah Be...

On The Thread’s Ask a Bookseller series, we talk to independent booksellers all over the country to find out what books they’re most excited about right now. October is around the corner, and with it spooky season. If you like to settle into fall on a diet of murder mysteries and true-crime documentaries, check out the novel "Penance" by Eliza Clark. That's the recommendation from Kate Stern of An...

On The Thread’s Ask a Bookseller series, we talk to independent booksellers all over the country to find out what books they’re most excited about right now.   Click here. All this month, Ask a Bookseller is focusing on great reads for kids and teens as they mark the start of the new school year. September is also when the longlists for the National Book Awards come out, and this week’s recommenda...

On The Thread’s Ask a Bookseller series, we talk to independent booksellers all over the country to find out what books they’re most excited about right now.   Click here. We continue our focus on books for kids and teens this September with a middle-grade novel that introduces censorship to middle schoolers. Hana Duckworth of Secret Garden Bookstore in Seattle, Wash., recommends the middle-grade...

On The Thread’s Ask a Bookseller series, we talk to independent booksellers all over the country to find out what books they’re most excited about right now.   Click here. In honor of the start of school, Ask a Bookseller is focused on recommendations for kids and teens — although Kristin Nilsen of Big Hill Books in Minneapolis recommends this middle-grade read for everybody. It’s the newest title...

Summer is winding down, but that doesn’t mean the causal beach read is going anywhere. MPR News host and newscaster Emily Bright spoke with three booksellers from Minnesota about current trends and their favorite reads during a live conversation at the Minnesota State Fair. Pallas Erdrich, co-manager of Birchbark Books in Minneapolis; Char Klimek, owner of Hearthside Books in Watertown; and Amy Er...

On The Thread’s Ask a Bookseller series, we talk to independent booksellers all over the country to find out what books they’re most excited about right now.   The State Fair is in its last hurrah through Labor Day, and the new school year is gearing up. This week, we’re combining both those energies with a local picture book recommendation recorded live at the fair. Pallas Erdrich of Birchbark Bo...

On The Thread’s Ask a Bookseller series, we talk to independent booksellers all over the country to find out what books they’re most excited about right now.   Eye-catching title, isn't it? Zoologist Lucy Cooke takes a close look at the often-overlooked female half of the animal kingdom and the active role they take within evolutionary biology. This recommendation comes from Carolyn Chin of Books...

On The Thread’s Ask a Bookseller series, we talk to independent booksellers all over the country to find out what books they’re most excited about right now. Click here. Maggie Robe of Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill, N.C., loves a good character-driven novel. She recommends Alison Espach’s new dark comedy, “The Wedding People.” Espach rose to acclaim for her novels “The Adults” and “Notes on Your Su...

On The Thread’s Ask a Bookseller series, we talk to independent booksellers all over the country to find out what books they’re most excited about right now.   Listen to the podcast here This one’s for the romance lovers. Chardai Powell is with Loyalty Bookstores, with locations in Silver Spring, Md., and Washington, DC. Her beat is indie Black romance writers, and she says part of the joy is bein...

Call the midwife: Jolie Hughes of Morgan Hill Bookstore in New London, N.H., recommends two recent historical fiction books that both feature midwives — one real, one fictional — set at different points within American history. “The Sweet Blue Distance” by Sara Donati follows a descendent of her bestselling Wilderness series. Young midwife Carrie Ballentyne travels from her home in New York to wor...

On The Thread’s Ask a Bookseller series, we talk to independent booksellers all over the country to find out what books they’re most excited about right now.   Click here. Mojade Adejokun of Paper Hearts Bookstore in Little Rock, Ark., recommends the novel “Women of Good Fortune” by Sophie Wan for your next fun summer read.  Mojade describes the story as a heist that grows out of a group chat. You...

On The Thread’s Ask a Bookseller series, we talk to independent booksellers all over the country to find out what books they’re most excited about right now.   Click here. Jhoanna Belfer of Bel Canto Books in Long Beach, Cal., recommends the novel “Hula” by Jasmine ‘Iolani Hakes. Jhoanna calls it a “gorgeously written family saga” offering an “insider look” at Hawaii. The lyrical writing incorpora...

On The Thread’s Ask a Bookseller series, we talk to independent booksellers all over the country to find out what books they’re most excited about right now.   Click here. Emily Sands of the Williams Bookstore in Williamstown, Mass., recommends a sci-fi/fantasy quest to keep you company this summer. It’s called “Star Bringer” by Tracy Wolf and Nina Croft. The voice-driven novel is marketed as “Fir...

On The Thread’s Ask a Bookseller series, we talk to independent booksellers all over the country to find out what books they’re most excited about right now.   Maris Herrington of McLean and Eakin Booksellers in Petoskey, Mich., says one of the best books she’s read so far this year is Chris Whitaker’s mystery/thriller, “All the Colors of the Dark.” It comes out on Tuesday, June 25.   Click here....

On The Thread’s Ask a Bookseller series, we talk to independent booksellers all over the country to find out what books they’re most excited about right now.   Click here. Emma Presnell of Carmichaels Bookstore in Louisville, Ky., recommends a brand new short story collection that was released just in time for Pride Month. It’s a YA anthology called “We Mostly Come Out at Night: 15 Queer Tales of...

Looking for a novel you can pass around to your friends and family at the next gathering? Tiffany Lauderdale Phillips of Wild Geese Bookshop in Franklin, Ind., recommends Kaliane Bradley’s debut novel “The Ministry of Time.” She calls it a time-travel romance with a James Bond element, with beautiful writing and ideas that will leave you with plenty to talk about over dinner. The premise is that a...

Stefen Holtrey of Brilliant Books in Traverse City, Mich., has a title for readers who love to be surprised by something experimental and new. He’s a big fan of Michael Cisco, whose work is generally classified as weird or speculative fiction but whose novels vary wildly in style. A philosophical writer who tends toward a horror lens, his work regularly defies genres in ways Holtrey finds delightf...

On The Thread’s Ask a Bookseller series, we talk to independent booksellers all over the country to find out what books they’re most excited about right now.   Click here. Darcie Shultz of Books and Burrow in Pittsburgh, Kas., highly recommends Linnea Axelsson’s novel in verse “Aednan: An Epic,” which was translated by Saskia Vogel. It’s a sweeping saga set across 100 years, three generations and...

On The Thread’s Ask a Bookseller series, we talk to independent booksellers all over the country to find out what books they’re most excited about right now. If you love a good cozy romance or fantasy — romantasy, anyone? — then Charlotte Klimek of Hearthside Books i n Watertown, Minn., has the perfect book for you. You get a good sense of the genre from the title alone; it’s “Can’t Spell Treason...

On The Thread’s Ask a Bookseller series, we talk to independent booksellers all over the country to find out what books they’re most excited about right now. Click here. This week’s recommendation comes from Carrie Koepke of Skylark Bookshop in Columbia, Mo. She suggests the nonfiction book “The Devil’s Element: Phosphorus and a World Out of Balance” by Dan Egan. The paperback comes out in June. A...

On The Thread’s Ask a Bookseller series, we talk to independent booksellers all over the country to find out what books they’re most excited about right now. It’s Independent Bookstore Day! Many participating indie bookstores across the country are offering author readings, coupons, prize drawings and other events. Check out your local bookstore — or several, if you can. One participating bookstor...

On The Thread’s Ask a Bookseller series, we talk to independent booksellers all over the country to find out what books they’re most excited about right now. Click here. Step aside, Olive Kitteridge. There’s a new woman in town who’s difficult but loveable, complex and, in this case, fabulous. It’s Honey Fasinga. Sheila Burns, of Bloomsbury Books in Ashland, Ore., recommended “Honey” by Victor Lod...

This one’s for the creatives. Used bookstores can be a treasure trove of great reads, old and new, on a huge variety of topics. Dickson St. Bookshop in Fayetteville, Ark., is one such spot. Bookseller Elaine Eckert says she gets particularly excited when she comes across a copy of her favorite nonfiction book, “Art and Fear: Observations on the Perils (and Rewards) of Artmaking,” by David Bayles a...