The Land and Its People

by David Sedaris

In The Land and Its People, his first collection since Happy-Go-Lucky, David Sedaris reflects on what it means to be a foreigner, a brother, a lifelong friend. He tries on the role of caretaker after his boyfriend Hugh’s hip-replacement surgery, and both succeeds and fails. He buys his sister a cape and discusses his brother with a jaded Duolingo bot. He walks dozens of miles with his friend Dawn and challenges her to eat a truck tire. Ever adding to his list of “Countries I Have Been To,” he rides a horse named Tequila in Guatemala, buys a bespoke priest’s cassock in Vatican City, and goes on safari in Kenya without taking a single photo.

There is sadness here—scrolling through his address book, he realizes how many dear friends are now deceased—but also delight: he revels in author’s biographies, the malapropism that becomes a decades-long inside joke, and pair of well-made cotton underpants. He is bitten by a dog. A train passenger vomits in his face. A woman on the street late at night either sexually harasses him or doesn’t. Look how hard it is to be alive!

Throughout these essays—at once acerbic and tender, playful and profound—Sedaris shows how much there is to marvel at when you keep your head up and your eyes open, observing with warmth and curiosity this fascinating human species and the lands we inhabit.

Genres: Nonfiction, Humor, Essays, Memoir, Biography, Biography Memoir, Audiobook

272 pages, Hardcover

Expected publication May 26, 2026

About the author

David Raymond Sedaris is an American humorist, comedian, author, and radio contributor. He was publicly recognized in 1992 when National Public Radio broadcast his essay "Santaland Diaries". He published his first collection of essays and short stories, Barrel Fever, in 1994. His next book, Naked (1997), became his first of a series of New York Times Bestsellers, and his 2000 collection Me Talk Pretty One Day won the Thurber Prize for American Humor.
Much of Sedaris's humor is autobiographical and self-deprecating and often concerns his family life, his middle-class upbringing in the suburbs of Raleigh, North Carolina, his Greek heritage, homosexuality, jobs, education, drug use, and obsessive behaviors, as well as his life in France, London, New York, and the South Downs in England. He is the brother and writing collaborator of actress Amy Sedaris.
In 2019, Sedaris was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Letters.

Reviews

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

Admittedly my review of Sedaris’ previous book was harsh. I try to write reviews just after I finish a book, and my emotions are high and my thoughts haven’t had time to mellow. I probably could have put a sweeter spin on what I didn’t like in the collection, but it is how I felt in the moment.

Thankfully, this new collection gets all of my praise….almost! The cover price is worth the number of times I laughed out loud, like cathartic, deep, laughing. Much needed laughing. Sedaris isn’t holding back, he’s unbelievably irreverent and not at all PC here, it was shocking, and, at least to me, hilarious.

There are times he falls into Andy Rooney territory. “Get off my lawn!” style curmudgeoness. And one of my disagreements from the last book comes up again here, there’s lots of talk about the fancy possessions being acquired. Thankfully, the luxe mentions are used better here. A tale about a very pricey cashmere cape is a stunner, funny, sarcastic, and heartfelt in that special Sedaris way.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an early peek.

[CJ Alberts]

Am I the first person to review the new Sedaris on Goodreads wtf!!!! David is less angry at his dad in this one and I’m happy for him. I just simply love him, even if he’s completely unrelatable to me on an income level now he still Talks To Me you know

[Toni · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mostly new essays. Still funny but a tad less irreverent.

Worth a read or better yet, a listen.



Thanks Edelweiss and Little, Brown and Company.

[Danielle · Rating 1 out of 5]

It's been awhile since I've read any essays by David Sedaris, and I honestly don't remember enough about them to remember if he's always been so self-centered or if my tolerance for reading about has changed. Either way I quit this book partway through the second essay. I was already thinking I wasn't that interested in what he had to offer based on the first essay in which he basically whines the entire time about his husband needing a hip replacement and sort of celebrates how he got out of taking care of him. Then at some point in the second essay about his friend and tour employee he talks about how despite the fact that she had a pre-existing lung condition he basically bullied her into quitting wearing mask after which she immediately got COVID. I have no time or patience for this brand of selfishness anymore.

[Bailey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some laugh-out-loud (or at least snort-out-loud) moments, but too much of the collection felt nostalgic "for the good old days" in a way that left a bad taste in my mouth. A lot of "my parents beat the shit out of me, and I'm fine" and "I'm not like those annoying, modern gays; I'm a cool (read: transphobic?) gay!" Oh, and he apparently hates Greta Thunberg, so giving big loser vibes there, too, unfortunately, especially for someone who says he thinks littering should be punishable by death.

Ultimately it kind of felt like he didn't have that much to say, but wanted to publish another book anyway (and make more money, which is another thing he talked about so much in this one).

[Brigid · Rating 3 out of 5]

I grew up reading and adoring David Sedaris. Through his eyes, the world felt wild, fascinating and tender. While I laughed a few times and enjoyed revisiting hearing his voice, he has aged and frankly hardened. The stories aren't nuanced, playful or thoughtful. They wind and twist and, in the end, I'm left feeling like there is very little heart in them. He comes off as inconsiderate and condescending even to those he loves most.

This ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Lisa Burris · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is not secret that David Sedaris is a master of the essay form, and his latest collection underscores that. Whether eulogizing a childhood friend or lamenting the moroseness of his godson, Sedaris is relatable and funny, and, for those of us who have long enjoyed his work, reading each new collection is like catching up with an old, albeit often crotchety, friend.

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Annoyed by some of David's critical opinions, but overall had a good time