The Things We Never Say

by Elizabeth Strout

First published 2026

When Elizabeth's father dies, she returns home to her small Maine town. Confronted with memories she's long suppressed, Elizabeth must face the fallout from a traumatic event that changed the course of her family forever. As she sifts through the wreckage of the past, Elizabeth discovers unexpected insights about herself, her loved ones, and the meaning of home. In the end, she must decide whether to reckon with the ghosts that have haunted her for decades or leave them behind.

Genres: fiction, literary-fiction, contemporary, 21st-century, family-drama

Vibes: emotional-atmospheric, intimate, thought-provoking

Tropes: coming-of-age, reckoning-with-the-past

Setting: Maine

Period: 21st-century

224 pages · Hardcover · Random House

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