A review by jessiewolf
Behind You Is the Sea by Susan Muaddi Darraj

5.0

This book is impeccable. I don't usually like short stories or novels-in-stories, but this book is absolutely the exception for me. Every chapter is from a different character's perspective, and while each story could stand alone and be a great success the sum of all of them together is beyond exceptional. Darraj tackles unplanned pregnancy, divorce, domestic violence, and colonization with a calculated deftness--she just hits every note perfectly. And, at the same time, each story holds love, family, joy, and hope, and those notes are just as perfect. I don't have anything to say that isn't just gushing praise. As a bookseller, I'm very pleased to see more Palestinian voices being published and marketed in a mainstream market, and I can't wait to get this book into the hands of as many of my customers as possible.