{"product_id":"country-people-the-book-of-the-summer-mick-herron-9781399835022","title":"Country People: 'The book of the summer' Mick Herron","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eFrom the author of NORTH WOODS, a joyous new novel about marriage, family, friendship, storytelling, and how people find connection in an increasingly fragmented world.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e🍃 \u003cb\u003e'THE BOOK OF THE SUMMER' Mick Herron \u003c\/b\u003e🍃\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eFROM THE BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF \u003ci\u003eNORTH WOODS\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e'LYRICAL and JOYFUL' \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eSarah Jessica Parker\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e'Told with WARMTH and WIT, Mason's prose shimmers in this immersive ode to stories, to the land, and its people'\u003cb\u003e Lucy Steeds, author of \u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe Artist\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e'This is, simply put, a JOYFUL book - and the deeper you dig, the more joyful it becomes' \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eGuardian\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e'A CHARMING book about ambition, marriage and country living' \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eSunday Times Style\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e'A book to make the world feel a little LIGHTER, a little warmer' \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eRon Charles\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eMiles Krzelewski is a devoted husband, a doting father beloved for his outlandish bedtime stories, and the proud owner of a truffle-hunting dog in a land with no truffles. He is also a bit lost, twelve years late with his PhD on Russian folktales and increasingly haunted by a sense that he's become a disappointment to his family.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eSo when his wife Kate accepts a visiting professorship at a prestigious college in the far away forests of Vermont, he decides that this will be the year to finally move forward with his life. \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBut Miles is a man of many enthusiasms, who possesses, in Kate's, words, 'a great capacity to fall in with anyone, anywhere'. Soon he finds himself entangled with a cast of characters as colorful as those of any of his folktales - from a ghostly tree surgeon, to a scythe-mad biochemist, a Shakespearean temptress, and a photographer of snowflakes - until at last he stumbles upon a bizarre local legend, which, he begins to suspect, might not be a legend at all.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e🍃 \u003cb\u003eA FAMILY'S NEW BEGINNING. \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eTHE LOCAL'S OLDEST LEGEND. \u003c\/b\u003e🍃\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003ePraise for Daniel Mason \u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e'A virtuoso' \u003ci\u003eMail on Sunday\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e'Has the born storyteller's gift' \u003ci\u003eDaily Mail\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e'Genius' \u003ci\u003eWashington Post\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e'Brave and original' \u003ci\u003eGuardian\u003c\/i\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e'Never fails to surprise and delight' \u003ci\u003eSunday Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e'Teases out the joy and meaning in the sometimes small lives of his characters' \u003ci\u003eThe Times\u003c\/i\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e'Shows us what is possible when a writer lets his hair down' \u003ci\u003eFinancial Times\u003c\/i\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch4\u003eDetails\u003c\/h4\u003e\u003cp\u003eISBN13: 9781399835022\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eFormat: Paperback \/ softback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eNumber of Pages: 320\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eEdition: \u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePublication Date: 07 Jul 2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePublisher: John Murray Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePublication City, Country: United Kingdom\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eDimensions (cm): 23.2(H)x15.2(L)x2.4(W)400\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWeight (gm): 400\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch4\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h4\u003eDaniel Mason is a doctor and author of The Piano Tuner (2002), A Far Country (2007), The Winter Soldier (2018), and A Registry of My Passage Upon the Earth (2020), which was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. His work has been translated into 28 languages, adapted for opera and the stage, and awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship, the Joyce Carol Oates Prize, the California Book Award, the Northern California Book Award, and a Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts. His short stories and essays have been awarded two Pushcart Prizes, a National Magazine Award and an O. Henry Prize. He is an assistant professor in the Stanford University Department of Psychiatry. He currently lives in Palo Alto, CA.\u003ch4\u003eReviews\u003c\/h4\u003eA fantastical journey through family, folktales and a world beneath our feet . . . the whole thing is delivered in prose so witty and gorgeous that it calls to mind Nabokov's comic masterpiece Pnin, surely another of the book's literary antecedents. \u003cb\u003eThis is, put simply, a joyful book - and the deeper you dig, the more joyful it becomes\u003c\/b\u003e * Guardian *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eVery funny\u003c\/b\u003e . . . \u003cb\u003ea perfect summer escape\u003c\/b\u003e . . . as tasty and oddly shaped as an organic apple * Financial Times *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eCharming\u003c\/b\u003e . . . a prescription for summer amusement that takes immediate effect . . . There's so much fine, freewheeling observation and pillowy erudition here, it's tempting just to sink in * New York Times *\u003cbr\u003eMason's prose is full of playful narrative sleights of hand . . . \u003cb\u003ea treat\u003c\/b\u003e * Sunday Times *\u003cbr\u003eA \u003cb\u003echarming\u003c\/b\u003e book about ambition, marriage, and country living * Sunday Times Style *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eVirtuosic\u003c\/b\u003e -- Michael Donkor * R4 Front Row *\u003cbr\u003eI was charmed . . . \u003cb\u003eOne of the books of the summer for me\u003c\/b\u003e, everyone should be taking the book off to their sun loungers -- Dr Kate Maltby * R4 Front Row *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLyrical and joyful\u003c\/b\u003e -- Sarah Jessica Parker\u003cbr\u003eWonderful - \u003cb\u003efull of joy\u003c\/b\u003e - and exactly the kind of reading experience we could all do with right now. \u003cb\u003eThe book of the summer\u003c\/b\u003e -- Mick Herron, author of SLOW HORSES\u003cbr\u003eNarrated in an arch, long-suffering voice that brings out the comic flavor like salt on caramel. Think of it as a companion to Andrew Sean Greer's \u003ci\u003eVilla Coco\u003c\/i\u003e. One comic novel this good feels lucky; two in the same summer feels like cheating . . . \u003cb\u003eTremendously endearing\u003c\/b\u003e. Mason has written a comedy about a man who can't quite secure his place above ground but senses the wonder lurking just beneath our feet. That and a beloved Italian dog who digs through every pillow, sofa, and floor are all you really need for \u003cb\u003ea book to make the world feel a little lighter, a little warmer\u003c\/b\u003e -- Ron Charles, Substack\u003cbr\u003eA rippling, rambunctious mystery that ricochets between the earthy and the sublime. \u003cb\u003eTold with warmth and wit, Mason's prose shimmers\u003c\/b\u003e in this immersive ode to stories, to the land, and its people -- Lucy Steeds, Sunday Times bestselling author of THE ARTIST\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA charming, funny, exhilarating Vermont adventure\u003c\/b\u003e -- Clare Fuller, author of SWIMMING LESSONS\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSuperb. I was instantly drawn into Mason's bright, clever, wry world\u003c\/b\u003e. There was so much to admire about the story with its terrestrial and subterrestrial layers, the fun Mason has with the preoccupations and contradictions of post-pandemic America, the warmth and love he shows for and between his characters, and the artful way he illuminates the power of community -- Dr Gavin Francis, bestselling author of ADVENTURES IN HUMAN BEING and THE UNFRAGILE MIND\u003cbr\u003eSatirical but big-hearted and empathetic . . . Mason is a lively, fluid writer; here he glides smoothly between present and past, myth and everyday detail, skepticism and credulity. He has fun with his characters without making fun of them . . .\u003cb\u003e It is simply put, very funny\u003c\/b\u003e . . . Reading \u003ci\u003eCountry People\u003c\/i\u003e in public I kept having to muffle my LOLs. That's never a bad sign. The affection that Mason clearly feels for Miles and his brood is infectious * Boston Globe *\u003cbr\u003eMORE PRAISE FOR DANIEL MASON * : *\u003cbr\u003eA \u003cb\u003evirtuoso\u003c\/b\u003e * Mail on Sunday *\u003cbr\u003eHas the\u003cb\u003e born storyteller's gift\u003c\/b\u003e * Daily Mail *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eGenius\u003c\/b\u003e * Washington Post *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBrave and original\u003c\/b\u003e * Guardian *\u003cbr\u003eNever fails to surprise and delight * Sunday Times *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eTeases out the joy and meaning\u003c\/b\u003e in the sometimes small lives of his characters * The Times *\u003cbr\u003eShows us what is possible when a writer lets his hair down * Financial Times *","brand":"Daniel Mason","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48979753402585,"sku":"9781399835022","price":34.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0502\/9530\/8441\/files\/9781399835022.jpg?v=1784470273","url":"https:\/\/www.arielbooks.com.au\/products\/country-people-the-book-of-the-summer-mick-herron-9781399835022","provider":"Ariel","version":"1.0","type":"link"}