I’ve read two 5-star novels in 2026 (so far)

Country People, by Daniel Mason, is the story of a man, twelve years late in delivering his PhD dissertation on Russian folktales, who moves with his family to rural Vermont when his wife accepts a one-year visiting professorship at a prestigious college. He meets a colorful cast of characters, embarks on outdoor adventures, and embraces unusual hobbies. What I loved about this book is, while I smiled and laughed on nearly every page, I was often startled by the depth of his thematic intent, especially in what he has to say about this beautiful planet, the people who live on it, and where it is that they may find paradise.

The Things We Never Say, by Elizabeth Strout, is the story of a man - a husband, father, and 11th grade History teacher - who grapples with feelings of loneliness and isolation. Strout adjusts the story’s lens, zooming in and out to include the interiority of this one man, the people tangential to his life, and to all humanity. She slides from present, to past, to future, as if chronological time is not particularly important to this story. What is important, however, are the things people choose to say (or not say) and do (or do not do) - the consequences of which have the power to make them feel desperately lonely or deeply connected. Oh, and the Epilogue completely undid me as Strout allows us to witness moments of grace that are everlasting.