Things We Never Say (2026)

Artie Dam has a secret. He spends his days teaching history to high-school students, correcting their casual cruelties and offering kind words to those who need them. He attends holiday parties with his wife of three decades, chats with neighbours and sails his boat on Massachusetts Bay, yet privately feels deeply isolated. He wonders how we can know so little about one another, even those closest to us. Then Artie discovers that life has been keeping a secret from him, threatening to overturn his entire world. He must chart a new course, reconsider the relationships he values most and make peace with the mysteries at the heart of existence. With exquisite prose and profound insight, Elizabeth Strout explores the way grief reverberates through decades, the comfort found in deep friendship and the freedom that comes from breaking free of our secrets.