Starting with such a powerful first chapter, I was instantly curious about the thematic of the story and how the author would offer us such powerful discussion on racism. And that’s where I was actually wrong.

For a book that is promoted to be a part of the 2020 Booker Longlist and the winner of the Goodreads Choice Awards for Best Debut Novel, this book was underwhelmingly disappointing to say the least.

The story follows Emira, a 25-years old baby sitter who was called in late by her employer whilst in a middle of a celebratory part with her friends. This “emergency” then spiraled into something else and we’ve got the screw that holds the cogs of the story’s wheel.

At it’s surface, the story was very much intriguing. It kept me reading and wanting for more — hence, why this is the fastest read I’ve had for this year . However, I eventually reached a point in the book when I basically knew what’s going to happen even without reading the entirety of the novel. It was unsatisfyingly predictable.

With a book categorized as literary fiction, this felt like it was poorly made. There was a dynamic discussion but it felt more of a side-story than anything else. Reading this was like watching a film marketed as one but was actually an elaborately long advertisement. The story repeatedly mentions one of the character’s endeavour in publishing a book and how it was going to be released soon like it was the whole point of the book and not just something in the background.

To be fair, it wasn’t much of a big deal but it dominated the story enough to make you think that the main theme of the book was nothing more than a subplot to offset how boring the story actually is.

Don’t even get me started with the characters. I do love Emira and Briar [the kid she was sitting], but dang the characters, if not all, of this book are hella problematic! I don’t even want to associate myself with any of them!

Such a Fun Age was an interesting story that’ll keep you reading — even if it’s just for the drama. I believe that it could’ve been set differently and had better focus and appreciation for the beautiful discussion that it wants to shed light on. Unfortunately, it wasn’t executed well enough. Aside from that, I think that it was written weakly for something that garnered such praises. Of course, take this review with a grain of salt. I might not have loved it as much as I’d liked, but I definitely appreciate reading it.

Kiley Reid takes readers through a dual point of view story between Emira and Alix. I found having access to both points of view, allowed me to reflect on the perceptions of each other throughout the story. Quickly into the story, Emira is on a babysitting job when she is accused of kidnapping the child in a supermarket. From there, the story continues to give an in depth storyline where racism and classism are explored. I found myself rooting for Emira the whole way!

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I loved this page turner! I couldn't put it down. I've given multiple copies of this book to friends and family, and they loved it too!

Novel begins with a nanny taking a child to a grocery store late at night and explodes from there. Well-written novel that explores racism, the mother/nanny relationship, working mothers. Highly readable and thought provoking.

I had a lot of mixed feelings when I finished Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid. Not about the book, but about my life and place in modern society. This is a great choice for book clubs!

This one was a very good, very well done audio book. The story completely had me hooked from the start. I was outraged and frustrated and then found myself laughing outloud to the wonderfully done humor. The characters were so realistic and well done and easy to love (or hate). The messages were subtle but you knew when you were cringing. Ugh, the dinner! The story flow was easy and I loved getting to know the whole cast. It was also eye-opening and charged and I was completely wrapped up in it all. I loved this one!

A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

The book starts quite action-packed, and I thought the rest of the novel would continue that way. Unfortunately, I was wrong. I was constantly hoping for something to happen while the story dragged out and it stayed slow. Many times, I was close to giving up and picking up another book. Now I wished I had because the ending wasn’t satisfactory either.

The fact that I couldn’t relate to the unlikable and stereotypical characters didn’t help. I simply did not find them believable, which had a strong effect on how I perceived the addressed political topics such as racism.

The blurb sounded so promising, but unfortunately, the execution let me down. I really don’t understand all the hype. This book definitely wasn’t for me.

This book is as good as everyone says it is, and I’m torn between praising the characters or praising the plot.

*Flips a coin*

THE CHARACTERS in this book!

Emira is cool, smart, funny, and lost. The thing she’s best at is loving a child that’s not hers, but she is so genuine that you can’t help but want good things for her. Alix is a Gwyneth Paltrow caricature, and I think I cringed my way through every scene she was in. And Briar! Children are so difficult to write believably, so Briar was a breath of fresh air since she actually sounded like a child with her weird fixations and funky sentence structure.

The author perfectly balanced strong characters with a strong plot. Not much happens on the outside, but there’s so much internal work that all these characters are doing, all while the tension leading up to the interview is building and building. I admired that this book is not afraid to ask the hard questions about class, racism, and performative activism.

Though I definitely learned from this book, I also feel like I left it with more questions than answers. I will be thinking about this book for a long time.

Not for me - felt reductive and the main character felt extremely flat. Unfortunately inaccurate depiction of the geography of Philadelphia also.

Complicating and compulsively readable, I keep thinking about this book long after reading it. It has haunted me. While I didn’t necessarily like the characters, I couldn’t help but be drawn in to their tale. What a conversation-starter about the choices we make, the biases we harbor and the mistakes we fumble through to find out who we truly are.

Absolutely loved this book. Finished it very quickly and fell in love with the main character. Different than my normal reads, and thought provoking.

I've had this sitting in my Kindle for what seems like forever so I finally read it. It was a good and fast read. I like how it ended and how the main character handled things. Overall good read!

Overall I liked this story. I thought both Alix and Emira’s stories uncomfortable at times. I feel like both characters were almost over-exaggerated though. After finishing it I realized I’m glad I read it but the ending felt very rushed and abrupt. I was invested in the characters and it was just done. The message of the story is important, just wished for a different ending.

It's been about 6 months since I finished this novel, and to be honest, I still feel conflicted. While a decent read, I feel that my own BIPOC experience makes it challenging to provide a fair review. Regardless, thank you for sharing your talent, Kiley Reid.

On the surface this is just a great story with interesting characters and an intriguing premise. Truly, though, there is so much more to this book. It's a study of race relations, white privilege and power, high school insecurities, and the tricky nature of loving a child you care for who is not your own. I thoroughly enjoyed it but was a smidge disappointed with the abrupt ending.

I used to work in wealthy family households. I had a cooking service and I housecleaned. I also worked as a hired "wife" for a family where the woman of the home was a vice president of a San Francisco clothing company. I related to Emira's position in many ways. How close to get to the family as a paid employee? What am I doing with my life? Am I truly an adult if I do this kind of work? When I did this work, I had no health insurance, that is one of the metrics Emira uses in judging her life compared to her friends.

Add to these issues, Emira is placed into a position of her employer's difficulty with racial issues or her employer's White Guilt. Alix is dealing with the move to Philidelphia from New York City where she had her place in society carved out. Now she is not so sure. She wants to be friends with Emira or at least "mentor" her but these actions scream tokenism. Emira also starts to date a white man who also has a habit of dating black women...why?

I love books that take on issues that I truly have no insight into. It is a way to walk in the shoes of someone else. I did relate, somewhat to Alix's impulses toward Emira but I also found her ambiguity unsettling. Are the post-college days for any young person, Such a Fun Age? Personally, I enjoyed life much more when I found my footing in the world complete with disposable income and clear goals.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I love, love this book. It's subject matter is so important. Also love how it demonstrated micro-racism too and not just overt examples

Emira Tucker had been out with her friends when she got the boss from her employer, the Chamberlains. They had some excitement at their house and could use her help keeping their young daughter, Briar, occupied. So Emira left her friends and walked Briar down to the neighborhood grocery store to get her out of the way. It was there that Emira, a Black woman, was accused of doing something nefarious with Briar, a young white child. Emira was more embarrassed than anything, but a kind stranger, Kelley, recorded the whole thing. Briar's dad showed up and set everybody straight, but the damage was done. Emira wants to forget the whole thing happened. But Briar's mom, Alix, was so shocked that she vowed to make it up to Emira. And becomes consumed trying to do just that. Will this one moment in time be the thing that defines Emira or the thing that defines Alix Chamberlain?

Alix Chamberlain and Emira Tucker have one thing in common, they are searching for meaning in their life. Emira is on the cusp of twenty-six and is sitting on the sidelines while her friends are finding meaningful careers and making adult decisions. Alix becomes obsessed with Emira. There are other characters in the book that are connected, but I will let you discover that for yourself. - CLICK HERE FOR SPOILERS - What I found fascinating was the way these two characters had two different perspectives on what had happened in the past. It was the perfect example of "there are three sides to every story." I struggled with liking Alix, she just seemed so over the top. And I loved how Emira handled it in the end, I think it showed true maturity on her part.

Bottom Line - Such A Fun Age made it to the top of many "Best of 2020" lists. And I totally get it. Such A Fun Age is a story with layered complexity meant to make the reader go deeper into the story. And if that is not worthy of accolades, I don't know what is.

Details:
Such A Fun Age by Kiley Reid
On Instagram
Pages: 320
Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons
Publication Date: 12/31/2019
Buy it Here!
Thank you to NetGalley for the book in exchange for an honest review.

I was trying to break out of my YA bubble and requested this book. Sadly, this definitely wasn't the story for me. I kept putting the book down and it took me forever to finish it.

Cleaning up my Netgalley account and realizing I never left feedback for this one. I am ashamed! I absolutely adored this book and talked endlessly about it on Instagram stories. It’s still one I frequently recommend. I will be first in line for this author’s next book!