This Is Not About Us, by Allegra Goodman (2026)
The novel opens as seventy-four-year-old Jeannie Rubinstein, the youngest of three sisters, is dying. She is surrounded by her family ~ her two sisters, her sons and her nieces and nephews. After Jeannie dies, the family gathers with food to mourn her passing. Sadly, however, Helen, the oldest sister (and apparently a terrible cook), becomes angry when the middle sister, Sylvia, brings an apple cake to the gathering. Everyone devours Sylvia's cake, thus beginning a feud between Helen and Sylvia. Although they used to be close, Helen refused to speak with Sylvia. This is the underlying thread of the novel.
As the novel unfolds, we learn of the lives of the other family members. Helen and her husband, Charlie, had two daughters ~ Pam and Wendy. Pam is single, much to the dismay of her parents, and Wendy is happily married to a non-Jewish woman. Thus, Helen has no grandchildren. A matter which greatly disturbs Sylvia. Pam and Wendy have their own tensions and hurt feelings to deal with.
Meanwhile, Sylvia's son, Richard, is navigating a divorce and shared parenting with his ex-wife. Their two young daughters have their own battles with their parents as they, too, must live with the consequences of the divorce.
Although the novel is "not about us", the reader, probably every family can relate to one or more of the circumstances of this family's trials and tribulations.
Read: July 31, 2026
4 Stars
