Country People: A GMA Book Club Pick

Fun little literary comedy. It didn’t sweep me up and away, and I doubt that it will haunt any of my future days, but I found it genuinely delightful.It starts out dry and a tad annoying (ugh, California folks prattling on about “country people” this and “country people” that), but Miles’s character arc spans growth, self-discovery, and an enormous cast of entertaining characters. Beautifully written, funny, cozy.Thank you to Random House, Daniel Mason, and NetGalley for this eARC. All opinions are my own.

Mason wrote "North Woods" which I never finished (and barely started) but I will rectify that because I LOVED Country People! It's such a charming, quiet, fun yet serious story. Miles and his two children move across county with his wife, Kate, who has taken a visiting professorship at a small college in New England. While Kate flourishes in their new environment (and the kids do well, too), Miles is trying to finish his dissertation on Russian Peasant Folktales (or is it Tolstoy? Or is it one of the gazillion other things he is interested in?) . He meets a lot of people and sort of builds a friendship but it isn't until he joins a---well, let's call it a secret society?--that he starts to feel at home. I loved all the characters, I love the intersection of real life and 'fairy tales', I loved the plot and didn't want it to end. It's a lovely, perfect little gem.

An easy and enjoyable read about a family’s year in their new state of Vermont! I laughed at so many parts of this book but also found the characters relatable especially with their struggles whether big or small. The setting was awesome and I felt like I was right there. Loved the themes of marriage and being a parent and the overall idea of how we as people connect with each other. Definitely a book I’ll read again. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

The story begins with a family of four on a cross country trip headed from California to their new home in Maine. What do you do with children on a cross country trip? Listen to audiobooks, of course! When they arrive in Maine, the plot delves into stories within stories, discovery of new surroundings and a different culture. Mason writes beautiful prose that treks down many rabbit holes, from mouse tunnels to scything. His wife, Kate, accepted the a professorship at a small college, hoping to help her husband Miles, a “forty-five year old man still stuck in his coming-of-age story.” It’s an exceptionally crafted story that alludes to works of classic literature suggesting the concept of a hollow earth. I found the book hard to put down and flew through the last 100 pages. I was already a fan of Daniel Mason & so excited when I heard of this new book on Book Riot podcast. Thanks to #Random House and #Netgalley for the free ARC ebook. This is my objective review.

This is a fun little book filled with all the charm of small town living and quirky characters. Overall I liked this novel, though it was a bit slow at times. A nice change of pace from my usual mystery/thriller reads.

“Country People,” by Daniel Mason, Random House, 336 pages, July 7, 2026.Miles Krzelewski and his wife Kate Petrosian live in California with their children Olive and Wesley and dog Giuseppe.Miles is 12 years late on his Ph.D. on Russian folktales and is a stay-at-home dad. When Kate is offered a one-year visiting professorship at a college in Vermont, they decide to move. Miles thinks he will be able to finish his dissertation there. They agree to housesit for another professor. Kate has multiple sclerosis, which is currently in remission.Since Miles has a lot of spare time, he gets involved with the school, the parents and other people in town. He then gets involved in researching a local legend.The pacing is slow and it doesn’t have much of a plot. While other people may enjoy this, it wasn’t a good fit for me.

When Miles Krzelweski’s wife Kate is offered a one-year visiting professorship in Vermont, he looks at this as an opportunity for himself as well! He has been working on his PhD dissertation for twelve years, and this sounds like a great opportunity to focus on it and get it done. Not surprisingly, there is always something else to do in Vermont, just as there was in California.This is a nice family story, and I enjoyed getting to know the family. Super-bright son Wesley was a delight, constantly surprising and enlightening his parents with his odd knowledge about seemingly everything, and his sister Olive provides some excitement for her parents late in the book. My favorite family member was probably the dog Giuseppe, whose very normal dog behavior is wonderfully portrayed and who provided me with a smile in the epilogues. Miles is the main focus of the book, though, and, frankly, I did not like him much. I could not really identify or sympathize with him. He seemed more like a teenager than a man in his forties, including an attraction to a woman teacher he is assisting with a student play, and I became rather impatient with him.Daniel Mason is a good writer, as I have experienced in several of his other books, and he shows it in Country People. The writing provided many smiles, and my kindle is decorated with a lot of “ha ha’s. In addition, there was a lot of fun information, like the fact that Chekhov could not bring himself to kill mice that had invaded his home, so he carried them back into the forest.The writing provided enjoyment, but the plot was not strong enough to keep me engaged with the story itself.I received an advance review copy of this book from Netgalley and Random House.

COUNTRY PEOPLE by Daniel Mason is a departure for the author – much less serious, much more absurd than his other novels that I’ve loved (The Winter Soldier and North Woods). But I found the book wholly enjoyable, with some of the snarkiness that appeared in North Woods used to celebrate and gently mock a couple of California academics and their young children who move to rural Vermont for a one-year sabbatical.It’s a send up of academia (especially English departments), of educated elites who struggle to understand rural America (and the plague of rats that run along ancient ley lines under their homes), of community groups who bond around the strangest of things (like the hollow earth theory), and the magical absurdity of middle school theatrical productions.The characters are quirky, and the action is lively and unpredictable enough to keep the pages turning. For those who are intrigued by a novel that reads as if someone crossed Richard Russo’s STRAIGHT MAN with Michael Chabon’s THE WONDER BOYS, this book is calling your name.

Daniel Mason has once again created wonderful characters who come to life as we watch them grow and adapt to a new environment. Mason's last book, North Woods, was one of my favorites in 2025, and this one will rank up there among my favorites in 2026.Miles, his wife Kate, and their two children relocate from an urban California city to a small college town in rural Vermont when Kate gets a one-year visiting professorship. Miles, a bit of a dreamer, is a stay-at-home dad, ostensibly working on his PhD dissertation. At age forty-five, after eleven different dissertation topic attempts, he is now drawn to Russian folktales as a sure-fire topic. Alas, he is soon diverted from his task by a group of local characters who convince him that the earth is hollow and that there is a cave leading to an underground world — if only they could find it. Miles soon comes to believe there may be some truth to the local legend and enthusiastically joins the hunt for it.As the months pass and the seasons change, the family gradually settles into their new life, trying to shed their urban ways and become Country People.This is a study in family dynamics and the lengths people will go to "fit in." I loved the Hollow Earth characters, who are so dedicated to their mission that they don't see its absurdity. Miles is a big-hearted character who tilts at windmills. Although North Woods is still my favorite Daniel Mason book, this, in its own quirky way, is also very good. 4/5 stars.

I am really going against popular opinion on this one, but Country People by Daniel Mason disappointed me in so many ways - especially when compared to North Woods which I loved.This novel is narrated by Miles, a main character who is described as charming. I found him annoying at best. Mid-40's and still "trying" (without much effort) to complete his PhD dissertation, the topic of which he has changed almost a dozen times (no wonder there's little progress). With Miles as the narrator, it's no surprise that the story meanders and wanders off on tangents as much as he does.The book is full of characters that he meets, so many characters that I found it difficult to connect with or care about most of them. Another thing that frustrated me considerably is the author's habit of using arcane words that most readers have never heard of. What is the point of this, sir? It interrupts the flow while readers stop, look up the word to see what you are saying. As a reader, I would prefer a smoother flow rather than a reminder of how smart you are (no offense intended).This was almost a DNF for me on several occasions. I was determined to finish it out of respect for the author's previous books. I finished it, but this offering is definitely not for me. I'm happy for all of the many who enjoyed it and wish I was one of them.Thanks to Random House for allowing me to access a DRC via NetGalley. Publication is 7/7/26. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own and are freely given.

I’m not a very good reader of books described as funny. Sometimes I think I just don’t have a good enough sense of humor because many times I find there’s a lot more serious than funny in these books. The book is very funny at times , but it is also reflects the more serious side of life - chronic illness, that marriage is not always easy even when people love each other, finding out who you are can be a slow process.The novel reads like a modern day fairy tale. The narration felt like - “once upon a time there was a family who moved from urban California to rural Vermont and this is their adventure - Miles, Kate, Wesley, Olive, and Giuseppe their dog and they lived …. Well I’m not going to tell the ending, but I found the story to be endearing with characters I loved. The literary references were a plus for me.Kate fits in easily in her academic position and the children seem to fit in well in school and with new friends. Miles is the one who has to work hard every day at connecting with the place - but he buys into it whole heartedly trying to absorb the local culture or rather to be absorbed into it, connecting with nature , with his environment, the people he meets, wanting to know about “country people “. All the while neglecting his unfinished dissertations for twelve years.I enjoyed the beginning, but it slowed down some in the middle. It was enjoyable enough, but I couldn’t help but think how quirky all of the people that Miles encounters and connects with were . I’m not sure this will be for everyone because there were a number of times when I thought - what ?However, Mason’s writing is as beautiful here as it is in his other novels that I’ve read and that kept me reading. I was going to rate it three stars , but then when I read the epilogue I realized how much this quirky bunch of country people meant to each other and to Miles . He’s a character I’ll remember . Deserving of four stars.I received a copy of this from Random House through NetGalley.

Thank you to NetGalley and to Random House for the ARC of Country People by Daniel Mason.What an absolute five star read. Hilarious, slice-of-life, thought provoking prose and wit. Everything that made North Woods great but with more humor, and hope and levity. I can't say enough great things about this novel. I'm shocked to see that Daniel Mason is from California and lives in California because man, as a born and raised New Englander, he really captures the essence of New England, and may be one of its best promoters in the 21st century.The first two parts of the book are meandering takes on rural life in Vermont, the characters you meet in town, and Miles' building reckoning with his thesis and what his true aims in life are. The third part just packs an absolute wallop of mystery, comedy, betrayal, loss, and everything else all rolled into one and all wonderfully tied together with a bow in the second epilogue. It is unpredictable, even though the stepping stones seem to exist when you reflect on the way the story arcs, and it shows you the best of human nature, even when people seem, at surface level, to be nonsensical.What I love about Mason's writing in this is that he does flashbacks and recall of other memories so seamlessly as he tells the overall story. He'll begin one section on a day in Vermont, but he'll pause to give you 10 pages on another historical building block of the family in other times to get to the significance of the present moment. And he does it with such lyricism and faultless transitions that the timelines layer over each other into the present beautifully and with such thoughtful and charming detail.He also keeps the book accessible for more levels of reader -- some of the Milton and Blake references were above me, even with an English degree, but he doesn't hover at that level the entire story, even though he is clearly capable of doing so. The novel is more middlebrow while still being very literary and very smart. It keeps you engrossed and entertained and it can challenge you to learn more about the references he's making instead of getting lost within them.In a time when a lot of literary fiction is a bit darker or drier, this book is such a refreshing, positive, funny take on the slice-of-life of one man's adventures in rural Vermont. It's a reminder of how we roll with the punches of every day life and how we persevere with a community, and it's just an absolutely lovely read.

“Country People”, the new novel by Daniel Mason, is a departure for this brilliant writer and I’m all in for it! (Frankly, this guy is incapable of writing a bad book.)This family saga is immediately immersive! Meet the Krzelewski-Petrosian family: father and perpetual Ph.D. candidate Miles, mother English professor Kate, son Wesley, daughter Olive, and dog Giuseppe. They have relocated from California to Vermont for Kate to take a one-year professorship at a small Liberal Arts college in Edenic rural Vermont.That’s the set-up; what follows is a hilarious fish-out-of-water, country people vs city folk, gentle satire that is thoroughly rewarding. Miles is the protagonist, but our storyteller/author is also a wonderful shadow Prepare to be delighted!!“Country People”, the new novel by Daniel Mason, is a departure for this brilliant writer and I’m all in for it! (Frankly, this guy is incapable of writing a bad book.)This family saga is immediately immersive! Meet the Krzelewski-Petrosian family: father and perpetual Ph.D. candidate Miles, mother English professor Kate, son Wesley, daughter Olive, and dog Giuseppe. They have relocated from California to Vermont for Kate to take a one-year professorship at a small Liberal Arts college in Edenic rural Vermont.That’s the set-up; what follows is a hilarious fish-out-of-water, country people vs city folk, gentle satire that is thoroughly rewarding. Miles is the protagonist, but our storyteller/author is also a wonderful shadow character.Some characters we meet (and love):A former academic who finds his life’s work, and true calling is in scything his yard.Olive’s third grade teacher who’s an inappropriate over-sharer.Don, a local talk show radio host who is deliciously politically incorrect, and his frequent callers who may or may not be crazy.Hugh, a nature hike guide full of celebrity gossip who subscribes to the “Earth is hollow” belief.An extremely kind man who claims to have been benignly possessed by the spirit of Wilson “Snowflake” Bentley! (I predict you, too, will fall down an interesting internet rabbit hole all about the real Snowflake Bentley! Enjoy!)When Miles is invited into a secret society dedicated to a bizzarro 19th century folk story about the existence of a fantastical subterranean paradise accessed through a cave in the local woods, will this finally be the thing that ignites his energy to complete his Ph. D.?And why is Guisseppe (and ALL the dogs in town) trying to dig to China?“Country People” is going on my Top Ten Best Reads for 2026, and I know I’ll be reading this wonderful story again - it’s too much fun to only read once!

Spend a year in the life of Miles Krzelewski, his wife Kate, their two children Olive and Wesley, and dog Giuseppe as they move from sunny California to Vermont for Kate’s new teaching job at a prestigious college. For the family, Vermont is the unknown, a wilderness and a chance for the urban, city folks to get to know the country people. Miles is the epitome of a family man- devoted to his wife and children. Kate is essentially the breadwinner, a much loved and successful English professor who takes a job at a college in southern Vermont.The story is mainly centered around Miles, a middle aged man who is stuck. His dissertation on Russian literature has languished for 12 years and he has lost any true desire to finish it. What is worse is that he feels that he is largely a disappointment to his family, particularly his wife.Essentially, Country People is a character study or rather several character studies. While at first Miles struggles to find his footing in this new environment- the children make friends at school and Kate is busy at teaching- he finds himself entangled with incredibly quirky Greenbury, Vermont residents. The motley crew of locals include a photographer of snowflakes who drives a repurposed ambulance, a former biochemist who is attempting to farm the land, conspiracy theorists, Olive's teacher who is obsessed with gaining back the land that Massachusetts has taken from Vermont... to just name a few. The inclusion of these wacky, but loveable characters might lead the reader to think, “Could people like this all exist in one town?” to which I say, “Does it matter?”Whether we are reading about Miles listening to the talk show "The Miscellaneous Minute" (which is really an hour), where the abrasive, but wacky host takes callers on various inane topics or we are experiencing Miles' first meeting with a secret society who is looking for a hidden world, we are entranced and engaged in whimsy and wonder. Miles is searching for connection and acceptance and he finds it with his new community of caring and loyal people.Country People is beautifully written, clever and humorous, a true literary work of art. Mason's writing is evocative, sprawling and descriptive in ways that stay with the reader. At times, Miles veers off into side stories that may initially distract the reader, but for the most part those wanderings are indicative of the story teller that Miles is and the side stories do generally play into the larger picture of the narrative.Country People is a look at the complexities of marriage and parenthood, the ways that stories shape our understanding and the ways in which we can redefine ourselves no matter how old.

Country People by Daniel Mason is a highly recommended literary character-driven family saga that follows a family who move from California to spend a year in Greensbury, Vermont. This follows the familiar trope of a "fish out of water" as an urban family moves among the country folk but here there is the added bonuses of a plethora of literary references, new weather experiences, local colorful characters, and some incredible stories of local legends.The Krzelewski-Petrosian family consists of Miles, who has been working on his Ph.D. dissertation on Russian folktales for over a decade, his wife Kate, an English professor who has been offered a one-year visiting professorship in Vermont and is a Milton and Blake specialist, their children, son Wesley, 12, and daughter Olive, 9, and their dog Giuseppe. While Kate teaches, Miles is supposed to be working on his dissertation while making sure the children get to school and keeping the household running. The family does experience a variety of events together. As for Miles, the dissertation falls to the side, he does care for the children, tells great bedtime stories, and meets a far-ranging cast of local characters.Although there are many humorous parts of this novel, they are more situational rather than slapstick, and are frequently embedded in interacting with local culture and Miles trying to understand "country people," who consist of a whole cast of colorful characters. He is also introduced to the legend of Jeremiah Wylkes, an early hollow earther, who claims to have discovered a cave leading to a kingdom below the earth’s surface. There are amusing excerpts from a local radio call in advice show called The Miscellaneous Minute, where the topics change daily and callers frequently derail the topic.While I enjoyed this extremely well-written, entertaining novel and the literary references and humor quite a bit, the plot does meander, seemingly aimlessly at times, between topics and enters into the realm of magical thinking. Part of my problem may be with Miles. While I appreciated his character's imagination and openness to new experiences, I wanted less passivity, some self-determination, and more acceptance of responsibilities, perhaps a job. As someone who has frequently moved to different areas of the country her whole life, Mason does capture the feeling when you first move to a new city and have to learn the local dialect and customs.Country People is a great choice for anyone who enjoys literary character-driven novels with magic realism embedded in the story line. Thanks to Random House for providing me with an advance reader's copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.