Look At You

by Amanda Smyth

This moving and emotionally vivid novel unfolds through a series of interconnected stories, centered on the experiences of a young white narrator growing up in a divided family. The narrative shifts between Trinidad and England, capturing the heroine's journey of self-discovery in a world fraught with contradictions, cruelty, and temptation. In this stylish and empathetic bildungsroman, Amanda Smyth's signature taut, lean prose and illuminating details bring to life a story of identity, race, gender, and expectation.

148 pages

Published April 24, 2025

About the author

Amanda Smyth is Irish Trinidadian, and author of four novels, Black Rock, A Kind of Eden, Fortune and Look at You, published by Peepal Tree Press in February 2025.

Her first novel, Black Rock, won the Prix du Premier Roman Etranger, was nominated for an NAACP award, short listed for McKitterick Prize, and selected as an Oprah Winfrey Summer Read. Black Rock was chosen as one of Waterstones New Voices, and translated into several languages. Her second novel, A Kind of Eden, set in contemporary Trinidad, was published in 2013 and optioned this year (2024) as a TV series by Ringside Studios. Fortune, her third novel, was based on the tragic Dome fire in Trinidad, 1928. Fortune, was shortlisted for Walter Scott prize 2022. Look at You, her fourth novel, will be published in 2025. Her fiction and poetry have appeared in New Writing, London Magazine, The Times Literary Supplement, Harvard Review and broadcast on BBC Radio 4. Amanda teaches creative writing at Arvon, Skyros, Greece.

Reviews

[Erin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thanks to NetGalley and Peepal Tree Press for access to this title. All opinions expressed are my own.

Originally, I placed a 3-star rating on the book when I finished my reading, but a few days later, when I tried to write a review, I realized that nothing had actually stuck with me. However, I do appreciate the writing style in which the coming-of-age moments of the main protagonist's life are split into chapters that feature the names of different people in one woman's life.




Expected Publication 24/04/25
Goodreads Review 26/03/25
#LookAtYou #NetGalley.

[BookOfCinz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pulsating, vivid, gripping and brilliantly written

Amanda Smyth did a phenomenal job in writing LOOK AT YOU , it is a novel told in stories that will leave you feeling breathless. The book is set in Trinidad and Tobago, England and sometimes in Ireland. The book follows a young girl from childhood to adulthood, her first time in Trinidad and Tobago with her family and how her heritage shaped her life. The book is narrated by different people and that pushes the plot along, and we find out more about the main character- what she is currently doing and how these different relationships continue to impact her.

The story is about the main character trying to find her way in the world, what it means to be a Trini leading in England, growing up in an in-between space and how that impacts her identity. I loved how we see her growing up, and the different challenges she faces and how it impacts her self-confidence.

In true Amanda Smyth style, the writing is the tight, engaging, brilliant and unforgettable. While it is a short story, it does leave a huge impact on you. I recommend going in blind with this one.

[Bonnie · Rating 5 out of 5]

there were many moments i was close to tears when i read this. as someone that’s going through a phase of asking myself where i wanna go, where my place is in the world, and who serves my love and who doesn’t, this was such a beautiful read.

[Reed Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and Peepal Tree Press for the advanced reader copy! All thoughts are my own:

Look at You follows a young narrator from childhood to adulthood as we encounter many friends and family along the way. It’s a journey of self-discovery, love, joy, pain, gain, loss, all of it.

Even as short as this book was, this was brilliant. A touching and sometimes tragic tale of life. After the prologue, I like to imagine this whole book is one big flashback over the narrator’s life, at the people she met and loved. While fiction, it was written with the verity of all our lives.

I think overall Smyth’s prose here is what made this so touching. There isn’t anything in this book that is necessarily groundbreaking (I don’t say that as a bad thing, it makes for a fairly comfy, nostalgic read) but just the feel of the book and closeness to the reader is what stands out to me.

[Alan · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautifully written account of growing up and early adulthood in Trinidad, Ireland, Leeds and London. The stories of the protagonist's life link and develop into a rounded portrait not only of her but her family and friends and partners: a complex and engaging world opened up for us with elegant prose that never puts a foot wrong. We follow the main character as she drifts, searching for something to fully commit to, and along the way we get an exploration of family - its disintegration and re-formation - racism, friendship and sexual encounter. The power of secrets and revelation play a big part in the plot and character development. A great feel for place, particularly Trinidad and what it was like to live there. Overall a compelling and engaging book that keeps surprising you with its insights and revelations, and delighting you with its perfectly judged writing.

Disclosure: Amanda is a friend (in my writer's group).

[Tess · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every sentence holds weight.
This isn’t just a story—it’s a lived experience.
You can feel the heat of Trinidad, the damp chill of England.
It’s all there, in the spaces between words.
A girl growing into herself, pulled between cultures, caught in the ache of divided loyalties and unspoken rules.
The writing is clean, deep, honest.
No wasted words. No false notes.
A read with real substance—quietly devastating, beautifully told.
Amanda Smyth doesn’t shout. She doesn’t need to.
Her characters stay with you, long after the last page.
She’s been admired by her peers for years, quietly brilliant while teaching at Oxford.
It’s time she was known by everyone.
This book belongs at the top of the literary world.

[Mika · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book follows a girl from her youth to being a young woman flitting between worlds of Trinidad and England mostly. We learn her story through chapters based on the important people in her life and her interactions with them, be it for a short period of time or a life time.

I enjoyed this unique format as it felt like a patchwork quilt of her life with each patch lending its unique story to the whole. Sometimes it felt like reading a selection of short stories. I was unaware of timelines through the book and I wonder if it would’ve mattered or wasn’t too relevant after all. I’m still not sure. All in all a great, thought provoking read!

[Shane Rajiv · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well written. Amanda makes it look easy. The novel seems like a memoir told through characters in her life. But there’s an arc at the end that makes you think perhaps parts of it really are a novel inspired auto-biographically. Good observations on Trinidadian life. Like all trini related novels - there’s much more sadness than joy. But at least there’s a bit of joy. Many novels forget that crucial aspect of life - that darkness isn’t all that’s required to make the reader read on.

[Mez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Look At You is written with masterly poise and beauty. I've read Smyth's previous novels, which are more traditionally "narrative". But using a novel-in-stories form, Look At You traces the life experiences of a child/teenager who is coming of age in England, Ireland and Trinidad. It felt as if I was peering through a window and witnessing powerful secrets. A must read for anyone interested in form and lyrical, pitch-perfect prose.

[Alan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is well written but I struggled slightly with the lack of a connecting theme. I suspect this may work well for other readers as it is a fresh approach, but I fear I am a little old fashioned.

[Riley K. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Will recommend to others. I found this to be a good read.

[Stacey Mckeogh · Rating 2 out of 5]

At first i liked the idea of this one - essentially this is a novel made up of lots of short stories all based around important people in the narrator's life and her experiences - but as the book progressed i found the structure a bit too disjointed and i found it hard to remember who some characters were and how they related to the narrator.
Overall i found this quite middle-of-the-road.