You Were Watching from the Sand

by Juliana Lamy

Playful, kinetic, and devastating in turn, You Were Watching from the Sand is a collection in which Haitian men, women, and children who find their lives cleaved by the interminably strange bite back at the bizarre with their own oddities. In “belly,” a young woman abandoned by her only living relative makes a person from the mud beside her backyard creek. In “We Feel it in Punta Cana,” a domestic child servant in the Dominican Republic tours through his own lush imagination to make his material conditions more bearable. In “The Oldest Sensation is Anger,” a teenager invites a same-aged family friend into her apartment and uncovers a spate of disturbing secrets about her. Written in a mixture of high lyricism, absurdist comedy, and Haitian cultural witticisms, this is a collection whose dynamism matches that of its characters at every beat and turn.

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction, Adult

169 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 19, 2023

Reviews

[endrju · Rating 4 out of 5]

A surprisingly consistent collection overspilling with lyricism, queerness, and otherworldly found amid the everyday.

[Moon · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's the right choice to make "You were watching from the sand" as the title of this short stories because it is my favorite in this book. and it's the first short story, which, makes it a bit disappointing that I don't really like the rest as much, except probably the one titled "Wynwood".

Now, I'm sure this is a good book. But I don't think this is really for me. I'm too stupid to understand most of the stories, and when I did, it didn't really do anything to me.

[Holly · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5. This felt like the beginning of her writing career. Like all of the stories were super intriguing and quite different from each other but still had a beautiful flow about them that encouraged you to actually think about what you’re reading but I think still room for more refinement. I’d be super keen to read more of her work

[emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

You Were Watching from the Sand is a beautiful debut short story collection from Juliana Lamy. The 12 stories included in this collection span a variety of places and themes, centering lives of Haitian individuals and members of the Haitian diaspora in the United States. Lamy’s characters and stories investigate relationships and identity in ways that are both incredibly real and magical, blending contemporary life with Haitian story and magical realism.

I adored this collection, and am so impressed that this is Lamy’s debut work as a published author. Her prose absolutely shines, elevating even the most simple of moments. I found myself drawn into the world of these characters so quickly, which is such a necessary skill as a short fiction writer. I particularly enjoyed Lamy’s ability to create atmosphere and intense imagery without giving the prose an overwritten or overly dense feel. Many of these stories deal with motherhood, family dynamics, queer identity, and youth in ways that feel familiar but fresh in their nuance and cultural context.

Every character in these stories felt very real to me, with complex stories and identities that clearly predate and continue beyond the stories that are presented here. I really liked this aspect of this collection—while each story felt contained and satisfying at its conclusion, you are also left with the impression these lives will continue, unknown to us. It gave the collection a very transient, human feel.

This is absolutely a collection that I would recommend to readers of contemporary literary fiction and magical realism, especially if you are looking for stories that focus on queer identity and femininity beyond the most prevalent white, middle-class perspective. I will definitely be looking out for Lamy’s next book.

[Parsnip · Rating 5 out of 5]

Honestly ? This was just brilliant.
I'm always partial to short stories for sure, but this collection was much more than enjoyable and I cannot wait for Julianna Lamy's next books.
The writing was beautiful and immersive, sometimes a bit opaque -which I love-, but always very true to the characters and their feelings. It was flowing and delicious, hard to put down kind of poetry.
The emotions this book made me feel were intense and so full, from deep melancholy to burning anger, from the fear only parents feel to the love of those who've lost too much. I held my breath many times, had a stone in my stomach and a knot in my throat. I WILL buy a physical copy because I want to reread every single word and hold them and underline them and take notes.

You were watching from the sand 5/5
The oldest sensation is anger 5/5
Sylpha 3,75/5
Manticore - 4,75/5
We feel it in Punta Cana - 4,5/5
Eli - 4,75/5
Open House - 4/5
Muscle Memory - 4,5
July in New Orleans - 5/5
belly - 4,5/5
mermaids - 4,75/5

ARC provided by the publisher through Netgalley.

[Hanna (theworldtoread) · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

Wow - juliana lamey is a word magician. I was blown away by the beautiful language in this short story collection. To top it off, the stories are also great. They focus mainly on the experiences of haïtian immigrants mixed with mythical and fantastical aspects. Reading the world ánd fantasy creatures? My two favourite things. My top 3 stories: we feel it in punta cana, mermaids! and july in new orleans. I would easily read a full length novel based on that last one. (Please? Please????)

Genuinely though - it's been a long time since i've read prose this rich and beautiful. I'm already waiting on lamey's next book.

Thanks netgalley and red hen press for the eArc in exchange for an honest review! You were watching from the sand is out on 19 september 2023.

[A · Rating 4 out of 5]

It takes talent to create a collection of short stories where each one stands on its own, yet they all feel familiar. That’s exactly what Juliana Lamy does here.

[Katherine · Rating 5 out of 5]

extremely best short stories reads like poetry slay

[Kevin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the propulsive energy of Juliana Lamy's writing in You Were Watching From the Sand and I gave it the highest mark among the 21 books that were finalists in the Firecracker Award for fiction, which I judged this year alongside authors Zeyn Joukhadar, and Talia Lakshmi Kolluri.

There's a wonderful specificity and sense of surroundings to her writing that sometimes elevates it into a charged poetry (for instance, the rush of the title story). While Lamy's impressive range is on full display through each vibrant and well-crafted story, she especially captures the visceral anguish, confusion, and unexpected wisdom of children and young people. These are awkwardly real trouble makers and fighters determined to rise above whatever unfortunate situation they find themselves in (like the narrators of the one-two punch of We Feel It in Punta Cana and Eli).
Lamy also shines in the way she describes the corporeal ("Eyes are for the nowness of emotions, for things that you feel in minutes or seconds. Mouths are for what you feel in days, weeks, years." pg 121) and the abstract ways that actions happen to her characters ("Ezra feels like the world's stopping around him, freckling into stillness." pg 87)

A commanding and sharp debut, this is likely just the beginning of what looks to be a thrilling literary career.

[Becca Hilberg · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't know much about Haitian culture, but this collection of short stories gave me an open window to learn what it's like to be Haitian in America. Some were heartbreaking, some were funny, and many were thoughtful, and I left the book feeling introspective and curious to learn more.

[Jerry · Rating 4 out of 5]

See my favorite quotes and passing thoughts on the book here:
https://jerrysaravia.com/2023/10/23/y...

[Gill Fletcher · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m sorry this is literally incredible and if you don’t like it I’m worried about you. I feel like I’ve been searching for a writer that strikes me this hard for years

[Niatate · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story flowed well and the characters were well developed. I recommend this book and look forward to more from this author.


****Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC in exchange for my honest review****

[Jacqueline Nyathi · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a nice collection of stories about Haitians and Haitian-Americans, with an occasional touch of the supernatural and fantastical. The stories explore love and family, childhood, immigration, poverty, colonialism and the US occupation, prejudice against Haiti and Haitians, racism in the US, and Haitian folklore.

In my favourite story, belly, Arbor has the ability to make a kind of golem from river mud, and she and her creation take delicious revenge on someone who truly deserves it. Another well-written (although somewhat sad) story is The Oldest Sensation is Anger, about really creepy cousins, one of whom has very special powers.

Many of the characters in You Were Watching From the Sand find a way to overcome difficult circumstances, but, very memorably, in We Feel it in Punta Cana, Lamy gives us a down-to-earth story about the dark side of colonial power.

In all, pleasurable and quick read.

Thank you to NetGalley and to Red Hen Press for the ARC.

[Dannica · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a good book! Here are my thoughts on the individual stories:

You Were Watching from the Sand
A lot going on. Some strong imagery, some powerful emotions. But kind of covers a lot of ground very quickly, and all in one paragraph, not my favorite style of literary fiction. I don't know if I would have chosen this to be the first story in the book, but it does start things off with a bang.

The Oldest Sensation Is Anger
I love stories about weird relationships between twenty-something-year-old women! I'll be real here I shipped Nadia and Che. Everything from the way Nadia stares at Che's shaved head when they first meet to the way she chews on Che's ascot at the end (minimal spoilers here) just felt very femslashy to me. But aside from that, I loved all the talk about Nadia's bad way of making friends and Che being like "you act all edgy and Bad but you're actually so sheltered and wouldn't know how to do Big Bad things if you got the chance" and Nadia's prickly offense but also her being into the fact that Che's willing to go there with her and fight her. Just in general I love Them. Also, magical realism!

Sylpha
Just okay to me. I liked all the longer stories in this better than the shorter stories. This is a weird little snapshot, but it doesn't really go anywhere.

Manticore
Yeeessss all the complicated but loving familial relationships. Mothers and their daughters that just want to jump off high up things bc it makes them feel "real"!! Attempts to communicate with dead grandfathers via voodoo!!! Spouses with very different attitudes towards grief who still work hard together to support and protect their children!!!!! I am all about every relationship in this story, messy but beautiful.

We Feel It In Punta Cana
Darkest story in the book, about an old white man and the young black boy working for him, and a very bad day--the white man basically going on a sadistic power trip while the boy watches. Very intense, a little scary, themes of racism and power imbalance. In a different book this would be my favorite story but this book has a ton of winners.

Eli
THIS on the other hand. Is fighting with "The Oldest Sensation is Anger" for top spot on my list. Once again I am unfortunately shipping the two leads of this story, except it's worse because this story is about a dude and the guy who kidnapped him to hold him as a hostage. But then it throws in lines like "I don't know what to do with this, this thing hanging between us that's equal parts him and me. You're not supposed to have anything in common with people who hurt you". Juliana Lamy, why would you do this to me???? I'm not saying stop I'm just saying.... what am I supposed to do!!!!! The protectiveness, the control, the carrying, the tears of sympathy........ there's a lot going on here and all I can say is wow.

Open House
At this point I was like "okay the gay vibes are not just me, we did have a gay (? technically the kid never uses pronouns but I got the sense they were a guy? unsure?) kiss". but actually tho I shipped the main character with his best friend who he feels kind of melded to and who says they're kind of related.

Wynwood
At last some unambiguously gay content, a breath of fresh air for me leaning too hard into the subtext and vibes. I love our MC's whole schtick of "I remind everyone of someone else" and how this is kind of an issue with him. he needs to not get paranoid about Nico! Also he just seems very gentle and deserves better and I hope he'll have lots of ppl see him in his life and I'm wishing him the best.
It was late at night by the time I read this. assume my literary analysis skills had somewhat degraded after this point.

Muscle Memory
I don't understand the title for this one but stealing with friends and longing for a better life is always a vibe.

July In New Orleans
Another short one that didn't quite hit for me. I wonder if Death has ever met Asaad from "Wynwood", they both have the tendency to remind ppl of others instead of being recognized as themselves. They could probably have an interesting conversation about the people they've been mistaken for. But if that happened, Asaad would probably be dead or dying or something so they can put it off for a while lols.

belly
I loved Lee and I loved the whole concept of making life out of clay and just everything about this one idk what to say I was kind of sleepy by this point. Saw the twist(?) ending coming but I was very satisfied with it and glad to be right. Poor Lee believed his maker could fix everything, tho, and that's not the case. I wonder what lies ahead for these two in the future.

mermaids
Question: Are there literal mermaids in this world in this story or did the kids just watch a weird documentary/TV show? I should probably reread at some point to figure it out.

Top two stories: "The Oldest Sensation Is Anger" and "Eli". However! I didn't dislike any of the stories in this book and all the longer ones I was really into. "Manticore", "Wynwood", "belly", hit after hit after hit. Of the short ones, "We Feel It In Punta Cana" definitely hits the hardest. But yeah just in general a very good short story collection, would recommend!!!!!

[Molly Misek · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lamy’s stories are delicious, scary, beyond. I want to write like her; I want to read more of her. My favorites were “The Oldest Sensation is Anger” and “belly” for the creepy tension they create.

[MiniMicroPup (X Liscombe) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Strange, familiar, ethereal

🐺🐕 Growls, Howls, and Tail Wags:
The short stories don't take themselves too seriously and because of that they hit harder. My favourite was Belly because it is comical, then relatable, then thought-provoking and eerie. To an extent, that is the energy every story delivered. Some are sillier than others, some more serious, some are hard to understand but most of them made me feel something and have stuck with me.

If you're an imaginative reader these short stories aren't a struggle. Go with the flow knowing it's more about the characters and vibes than the setting. The writing is crafted so that I didn't feel like I was fighting the author when I accidentally imagined something a certain way. Like watching a black and white sketch fill out and become a colourful portrait.

I enjoyed about 80% of the stories. I have a feeling that the few I didn't like were because I didn't have the life experience to understand the symbolism and depth of what was happening.

People aren't just "dark" or "brown-eyed". We get shading, analogies, and undertones. I wish every author would start describing their characters with this depth.

Mood Reading Match Up ☀️🌈🏝️
-Themes about identity, connection, interaction, self-awareness, interpersonal relationships
-Poetic/subjective style writing giving mysterious, no-plot-just-vibes energy
-Slice-of-life stories (a peek into someone's life at a certain moment)
-Touches of magical realism, absurdism, found family, and self-discovery

Content Heads-Up: Confinement. Kidnapping. Gun violence. Deportation. Transphobic characters. Excellent LGBTQ youth rep.

Format: E-book on Kindle

Digital advanced review copy from Red Hen Press and NetGalley (I received the arc at no cost, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.)

[Rachelle LeBlanc · Rating 3 out of 5]

Summary:

You Were Watching from the Sand is a collection of 12 short stories that states it is a stylistically and conceptually daring collection that winds from fantastic horror to mischievous domestic realism and always keeps in its sharp, compassionate view the material, spiritual, and emotional lives of Haitian people.


My thoughts:

The story range from 3 pages to 25 pages. Each story is also done in a different writing format. I liked that each was done in a different format because it helped with keep the stories separate.

Some of the stories were easy to get into like July in New Orleans kept my attention and was easy to follow but You Were Watching from the Sand was hard to follow. I also got confused in multiple spots.

Overall, this was a quick read that I liked and wasn’t something I normally would have read.

Thank you Travelling Pages Tour and Juliana Lamy for the complimentary copy.

[Tim Pacius]

This was an interesting collection of short stories. I thought that “Manticore” was far and away the best of the group. The difficulty that Taya and Elijah have with their daughter is one of the most realistic depictions I’ve read in parenting a very particular child.

In other places, Lamy does a good job depicting the kind of loose earnestness that only childhood male friends can have in “Open House” and “Wynwood”. I also enjoyed the relative passiveness of church in the stories which understandably make a part of West Indian culture but it’s a refreshing change here.

[Claudyne Vielot · Rating 3 out of 5]

This a beautiful set of short stories with Haitian protagonists as they make new lives for themselves outside of Haiti. From love to loss to familial distress, these characters felt very familiar to me, as did their speech and superstitions. I think this is an empathetic read for all immigrants or children of immigrants, regardless of their country of origin.

Thank you you to NetGalley and Red Hen Press for the opportunity to read this work prior to its release.

[Syd Loder · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was just a random pick up from the library based on its cover and i thoroughly enjoyed it. Lamy's writing style was not only impeccable but her story telling was just absolutely insane. The collection of short stories was not only enlightening as it pertains to Haitian culture but also beyond entertaining and unique. Each story had me gasping at the end, feeling all the emotions and I was simply astounded by the creativity.

[2TReads · Rating 4 out of 5]

I gobbled these stories up. Lamy's characters are all searching for connection, and the way she writes them finding their people is what I appreciated the most; the acceptance and bonds they formed and fought to keep. The stories that had a touch of folkloric magic drew me in because i adore stories that draw from our unique and shared histories.

[Brontee (bookswithbibi) 🍉 · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very interesting anthology of short stories. While I overall enjoyed it, I did find some stories more engaging than others. The writing across all stories was very captivating though.

Thank you to NG and the Publisher for an eARC in exchange of an honest review.

[Lynne Perednia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lovely debut short story collection from a Haitian-American author about young people seeking to make their own way.

[Nadia Jonesy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this read. All of the stories were quite good and some were better than others but they all were good to read.

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful short stories that offer something for everyone.

[Stephanie Dargusch Borders · Rating 3 out of 5]

I can’t pinpoint what about this collection missed the mark for me. It just never connected, every story felt half formed and had little thrust.

[Healz · Rating 3 out of 5]

I can see why some people likes it, but it's not really for me.

[b bb bbbb bbbbbbbb · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some of the stories work well and you can sink into the narrative and tone, others don't work as well for me.

[Jennifer Pullen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well written and surprising story collection.