SPRING IS A TIME THAT CALLS US TO THE NEW; BUT WHEN IT COMES to what you choose to read, it can be gratifying to discover that real freshness is often found in the voice of experience. I was thinking that as I considered four books appearing this month, each very different, but all from women who, across decades, have forged their own paths and made discoveries along the way.
The Things We Never Say is Elizabeth Strout’s eleventh book; her first novel set in Massachusetts rather than Maine (£18.99, Viking, out 7 May). There’s a sly – and rather meta – appearance from Olive Kitteridge, one of her most beloved characters, but only because this tale’s protagonist, Artie Dam, has himself read Strout’s book. It’s 2024 and Artie, 57, would…
