A collection of short stories about a family of Palestinians in Baltimore, this displays a range of human emotions.

"Behind You Is the Sea" is a powerful debut that beautifully captures the complexities of Palestinian American life. The author fearlessly confronts stereotypes, offering readers an intimate glimpse into the everyday realities and struggles of a vibrant community in Baltimore. The intertwining stories of the Baladis, Salamehs, and Ammars are rich with emotional depth, bringing to life the diverse experiences of immigrants navigating the challenges of tradition and modernity.

The characters are vividly rendered, each facing their own unique battles—whether it's class divides, familial expectations, or the search for identity. The humor and poignancy in their interactions make them relatable, and their journeys evoke a profound sense of empathy. The author’s writing is both fresh and evocative, drawing readers in with every page.

This novel not only entertains but also enlightens, challenging perceptions and inviting us to understand the richness of Palestinian culture beyond the stereotypes. It’s a heartfelt exploration of community, resilience, and the ties that bind us, making it an essential read in Arab-American literature. An unforgettable addition that deserves all five stars for its authenticity and impact!

This collection of interconnected short stories depicting the lives of Palestinian individuals is a beautiful exploration of hope, humor, and heartache. Through skillful writing, the author brings characters to life in vivid detail, capturing the essence of their experiences in a few short pages. It's a compelling read that leaves a lasting impression of resilience and humanity. Absolutely recommend!

This book was well written, but there was something about it that made it hard for me to commit. I did love getting to know each of the families, and my heart hurt for each of them throughout the book. Perhaps I am also just unused to short story collections, but a lot of the story felt undeveloped and inconclusive, leaving me with a sense of incompleteness/dissatisfaction.

These inter-related short stories about the Palestinian immigrant experience in Baltimore are fantastic. Completely absorbing writing and characters, and the stories are set in one of my favorite cities. I was on a plane to Baltimore while I was reading 😊.
What I loved about this collection of short stories is manifold. The characters are linked and some reoccur over the course of the collection. They all know each other, or are related, for the most part. The first story is about a pregnant teenager named Amal (Child of Air) who has made the difficult choice to keep her child, but is unsure if she wants the father in her life. Her brother Marcus is in the next story. He’s a cop trying to balance an overburdened life caring for the family and the community. Mr. Ammar is an older man who disapproves of everything, starting with his son’s wedding, a story that ends on a far gentler note than it began. The story titled The Hashtag is devastating and introduces the family advocate Samira, who has her own story later. The violence in this story spreads a long way in the collection, linking to the last story. Although there is much pride in culture and where the families came from and in protecting their culture—there’s a lot of food and parties and the deaths of parents where rituals and last wishes must be granted—there is a terrible misogyny lurking here.
There is a lot to discover in this literary collection. I have a hard time picking a favorite. The writing is excellent, the storytelling supreme. I highly recommend this #ownvoices multicultural collection.

While I really appreciated the concept for this narrative - a loosely connected, multi-POV weaving of slice-of-life vignettes for Palestinians living in diaspora in Baltimore, Maryland - it ultimately felt like it never exceeded the sum of its parts. This feels more like a collection of short stories than a novel, and I'm actually confused after reading an interview with the author that suggests the Marcus POV was her starting point. Marcus's POV didn't feel nearly as compelling as several of the others, and it romanticized policing in a way that didn't make sense for the rest of the narrative and feels tonally confusing. The prose is compelling, and I love the focus on stand-alone scenes (there are several short stories in here that were truly beautiful). The author absolutely shows more than she tells here, and it made this feel fast-paced and immersive. Marcus's police POVs were jarring, though, and I'm not sure I fully understand the author's intention with this character and perspective.

Behind You Is the Sea is a collection of interconnecting stories that follows three Palestinian families living in Baltimore as they navigate life and confront the difficulties of living in diaspora.

Each chapter was told from a different POV and was both thought provoking and emotive. However, since each chapter was a different persons story, some were more memorable than others.

I did enjoy this interconnected story a lot, and enjoyed Maysoon and Samira's stories the most. At times, I did feel like the character development was lacking a bit, but I think that is due to the structure of the book.

CW: Rania's chapter discusses her child's neurodivergent diagnosis and the difficulties they were experiencing with his school, but the author uses an outdated diagnosis that can be harmful to the autistic community.

Excellent collection of linked stories about the Palestinian community in Baltimore! The final story -- about a son returning his father's body to Palestine for burial -- is particularly devastating in the midst of the current genocide. Darraj shows the hopes, compromises, losses, and achievements of her characters in a way that is both specific and universal.

at a time when palestinians are being dehumanized by so many, i am grateful for the release of this book, which beautifully shows the opposite to be true.

The story explores the daily lives of three families in the Palestinian American community residing in Baltimore, as they confront stereotypes, prejudices, and racism.

Behind You is the Sea draws you in immediately with writing that's raw, alluring, heartbreaking, and hopeful. Darraj pens interlocking stories that delve into various aspects of American life, such as teen pregnancy and eating disorders, romance and weddings, aging parents and funerals. However, Darraj reveals how deeply emotional and complicated these issues can be within the Arab American community. With her last chapter, Darraj brings the story full circle, demonstrating her thoughtfulness in structuring the book. What a fantastic debut!

A gut wrenching and entirely necessary read. I fell in love with these characters over their lifetimes.

Thank you HarperVia for allowing me to read and review Behind You is the Sea on NetGalley.

Published: 01/16/24

Stars: 1.5

A debut novel that leaves me wondering who wrote the synopsis? Does the author speak to readers? I can't imagine.

The filthy language starts immediately and doesn't let up. Just as I would settle into understanding the story, the profanity starts out of nowhere. While I don't see a purpose for cussing, and I don't use the words -- might I add effortlessly, I feel like authors have a checklist and/or a quota.

Frankly, I would put this in the trash, shake off being blindsided by the synopsis, and move on.

Behind you is the Sea is a book of interconnected short stories and had I realized that format I might not have requested a copy as that is not my favorite style of writing. Separate from the format this book is well-written and tells compelling stories of the members of a Palestinian American community in Baltimore.

I found myself enjoying the stories in the book's second half better than the first half and I'm happy I stuck with the book.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of Behind You is the Sea in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you HarperVIA and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader's Copy!

Now available.

Told in innerconnected stories, Susan Muaddi Darraj's Behind You Is The Sea is an exploration into the lives, loves, and losses of Palestinian Americans. What I love most about this collection is the way it keeps spreading, casting a farther and farther net until.we finally end up back in the homeland. Each story builds on the last & it's so satisfying to see previous characters weave in and out of new chapters. I feel like I can read a whole collection about this specific community!

There are not enough words to describe how beautiful of a book/story this was! I did not want it to end. The multiple POV worked very well here and allowed me to really connect with each individual story/character and their struggles and triumphs. I found myself very drawn to Samira's story and Marcus's story. Although this story centers that of Palestinian Americans and in some ways their unique struggle, both here and in their homeland, the characters were relatable and the family dynamics and challenges were one I think many people will connect with regardless of their heritage.

Reading this while Gaza is currently going through what it is going through did add another layer of understanding but also grief. The chapter where Marcus returns his father home to Palestine to bury him was hard to read because that homeland does not exist in that way anymore. Who even knows if burying loved ones there will ever be allowed again.

Truly a heartfelt, heart warming and phenomenal read.

This collection of short stories has so much depth. I really enjoyed the vast cast of characters and how they all intersected. I thought the conversations it starts were really interesting, and I was particularly touched by the poetic descriptions of Arabic. I do wish we got more exploration of the American cop character and the other characters reactions to this character, since I felt like there was some romanticization of him in this book. There is also a mention of Asperger's as a diagnosis, which has been pointed out by neurodivergent reviewers as harmful.

A beautiful collection of stories from interconnected characters. At times uplifting and other times heart breaking, I loved getting to spend time with this community of characters.

In this moving collection of vignettes, Susan Muaddi Darraj explores the range of experiences of the Palestinian diaspora. Short snippets spanning multiple years invites readers into the daily lives and struggles of these families: generational divides, class struggles, the differences in expectations of the American Dream.

Darraj has expertly interwoven the lives of her characters; we see these singular people interacting in both positive and negative ways with the Palestinian community around them and the communities they live alongside. This book is a lesson that the Palestinian experience isn't just about pain and suffering, though that is surely a part of the story just like it is for any culture. There is love and joy, successes and celebrations. Behind You is the Sea is a heartfelt reminder that the Palestinian struggle is the human struggle. The fears and concerns are the same as anyone else's, but there is the added dimension of being Palestinian, of being from a place that others are trying to destroy.

So many topics are covered in these chapters that there's something everyone can relate to: loving someone whom your family doesn't approve of, success against the odds, the divide in socioeconomics, body image pressure, intimate relationships that go both right and very very wrong, casual racism and learning to use your voice, what familial duty means.

In Behind You is the Sea, Darraj provides readers just a peak behind the curtain of what it's like to be a Palestinian living in American. Their lives are full, their hurts are familiar and so are their joys.

While there are numerous triggering topics in this book, they are largely off page and discussed briefly. Infertility, domestic violence, and misogyny would be the exceptions.

Complicated feelings for this one. There were a few things that made me raise my eyebrows while reading and couldn’t get behind. I did read it in one sitting so it wasn’t bad it was quite good and interesting.

Behind You Is the Sea is a novel-in-stories that fully immerses us into the lives of three Palestinian American families living in Baltimore. Darraj boldly confronts stereotypes about Palestinian culture while tackling themes of family, race, and the American Dream. From complicated teen pregnancies to daily triumphs, from joyous weddings to heartbreaking funerals—I was fully invested in these characters and couldn’t turn the pages fast enough. These stories are rich, thought-provoking, and engaging. I cannot recommend this extraordinary debut enough.