This Is Not about Us: Fiction by Goodman, Allegra

A kaleidoscopic portrait of a modern American family--steadfast, complicated, begrudging, and loving--from the bestselling author of Isola

"A compelling, love-laced portrait of several generations of a family much like yours, mine and just about everyone's."--People (Most Anticipated Books of 2026)

Was this just a brief skirmish, or the beginning of a thirty-year feud? In the Rubinstein family, it could go either way.

When their beloved sister passes away, Sylvia and Helen Rubinstein are unmoored. A misunderstanding about apple cake turns into a decade of stubborn silence. Busy with their own lives--divorces, dating, career setbacks, college applications, bat mitzvahs and ballet recitals--their children do not want to get involved. As for their grandchildren? Impossible.

With This Is Not About Us, master storyteller Allegra Goodman--whose prior collection was heralded as "one of the most astute and engaging books about American family life" (The Boston Globe)--returns to the form and subject that endeared her to legions of readers. Sharply observed and laced with humor, This Is Not About Us is a story of growing up and growing old, the weight of parental expectations, and the complex connection between sisters--a big-hearted book about the love that binds a family across generations.


Author: Allegra Goodman
Publisher: Dial Press
Published: 02/10/2026
Pages: 336
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.10lbs
Size: 9.30h x 6.30w x 1.30d
ISBN: 9780593447840

Review Citation(s):
Booklist 01/01/2026
Shelf Awareness 01/01/0001
Publishers Weekly 12/15/2025
Library Journal 01/01/2026 pg. 58
Kirkus Reviews 01/01/2026

About the Author
Allegra Goodman is the author of seven novels, including the national bestseller Isola, which was a Reese's Book Club pick, and Sam, which was a Read with Jenna selection; two short story collections; and a novel for young readers. Her fiction has appeared in The New Yorker and elsewhere, and has been anthologized in The O. Henry Awards and Best American Short Stories. She lives with her family in Cambridge, Massachusetts.