Fans of Elizabeth Strout might be excited to learn that her most recent novel features a new cast of characters. I mean, we love Olive and Lucy, but new worlds beckon. 

THE THINGS WE NEVER SAY introduces Artie Dam, a history teacher at the local high school. “He was fifty-seven years old, and he did still love his students.” He’s been married to Evie for more than 30 years, and they have one son, Rob, in his late 20s. Artie is well regarded at school by students and teachers alike; he won Teacher of the Year five years ago. But, in reality, he’s lonely. He’s become obsessed with the notion of free will, but when he brings it up, people dismiss him. Evie is a therapist, but in their interactions at home, Artie often doesn’t feel heard. 

"I believe the things we never say are Strout’s true territory --- that she says them --- and no one does it better. For her fans, THE THINGS WE NEVER SAY is a cause for celebration."

“As many people do, Artie and Evie had suffered a tragedy.” Theirs has to do with a car accident that Rob had in high school. In Strout’s usual way, the event is related somewhat dispassionately, but the effects on the family are delineated over time in knowing and compassionate strokes. Tragedy changes us, and even if we pick ourselves up and go on, the effects and questions linger. This is Strout’s preferred terrain, and no one is more thorough yet subtle than she is. 

Since the accident, Artie has struggled to feel close to Rob and is puzzled by his romantic choices. To add to Artie’s malaise, he’s increasingly concerned about the upcoming 2024 presidential election. In teaching about the Civil War, Artie has his students choose a soldier or nurse from Massachusetts to study and report on. The embarrassed principal calls him into his office one day to inform him that some parents wonder why their kids can’t choose a Confederate soldier. 

Then the election happens. “Half the country was stunned, the other half jubilant.” There’s no doubt about which half Artie and his family are in. The morning after the election, he has a clear image “of a large steel door in front of him that was sliding down from the top of a massive doorway, as large as a wall, and as it reached the bottom, the strip of light that shone from underneath the huge steel door was gone.” 

In the midst of all of this, Artie nearly drowns in a sailing accident, Rob shares a stunning secret, and the various stresses of his life cause Artie to do and say things that puzzle and shock him. Still, he connects with (and champions) his students, particularly the ones who others scorn and shun. He’s mostly sympathetic to the mistakes they make and helps them cope with consequences when he can, but he’s also capable of kicking a particularly obnoxious student right out of class. 

As is typical of Strout’s books, we get glimpses of points of view of the people in Artie’s life: Evie, a co-teacher, a few students. We come to know Artie as a thoughtful, introspective and considerate man who is still engaged with big questions, pondering his dilemmas, and marveling at the stakes present in an outwardly ordinary life. 

Artie feels frustrated by the things we never say. After a party, he asks Evie, “I wonder why people never say anything real.” He catalogs the things “we all know” about the people at the party, but Evie dismisses him. “Artie, don’t be an idiot. No one at a cocktail party is going to talk about their daughter’s abortion or the affair they’re having. Honestly.” 

I believe the things we never say are Strout’s true territory --- that she says them --- and no one does it better. For her fans, THE THINGS WE NEVER SAY is a cause for celebration.