I was immediately drawn into this book. The story was engaging and the writing smooth. I just wanted to keep reading and reading. Unfortunately, I was not a fan of the ending. Not that I didn't like it, I just felt like there should have been a bit more. I clicked my kindle to go to the next page expecting another chapter and it was the acknowledgments.

Overall I really enjoyed the book though. I can see how it has been such a hit. It is from a fascinating perspective and is very real and relevant. I like that the book is told from multiple perspectives, it gives the characters a more dynamic feel.

Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid was a fantastically written novel. Emira was a delightful character, and I loved seeing her growth throughout the book. This story was more literary than I had originally anticipated. Although there was some plot, I would say it was a heavily character driven novel. It definitely left me with much to ponder. Kiley tackled many tough subjects in this book including the many different aspects of racism. She seamlessly portrayed how racism is sometimes overt and obvious, but other times it is covert and happening without the person even realizing what they are doing. I highly recommend this book.

Absolutely loved this book. The story hit on incredibly big themes but in such a different way. It was not a heavy read and I could not put it down, but it was such an important one. I will read anything Kiley Reid writes moving forward.

I have so many mixed feelings about this book. I liked Emira and thought she was a fantastic main character. It was definitely relevant and thought provoking, though I was hoping it would be a bit deeper. I really hated the character of Alix and thought she was super annoying, so that made the book a lot harder to read.

Kiley Reid took a pretty intense, timely topic and made it seem like an every day occurrence. Such a Fun Age was such a fun book. (Can I say fun? Important.)

Excellent contemporary fiction. Timely but also holds weight in its character development. The authors ability to articulate the complexity of the relationships, feelings, and undertones is stellar.

This is an interesting, well-written story and you’ll want to keep reading to find out who is the bigger villain of the two villains. I finished the book in two days - a perfect quarantine read. Thanks to #netgalley and #gpputnamssons for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book was phenomenal. I had no idea what this book was about when I requested it- I just did so because I kept hearing everyone talk about it! However, this book was easily a 5 star read for me. The novel starts out with a bang. The protagonist, Emira, is accused of kidnapping a white child she is babysitting, and the situation quickly escalates. As she is enduring this ridiculous occurrence, she meets a man who ends up embedding himself into her life. Meanwhile, the mother of the little girl, Alix, who is a well-meaning white woman, also gets to tell her side of the story in alternating chapters.
What I really liked about this book was the different viewpoints that Reid was able to give throughout the novel. I like that she showed Mira's perspective, and that she used the chapters from Alix's point of view to show how clueless some people really are about the state of racism in America.
I have no criticisms for this book. It was, quite simply, phenomenal.

Thank you NetGalley and publishers for an ARC. All opinions are my own.

I really enjoyed this book and can see why it has been a huge hit with book clubs. I really enjoyed the narrative and opportunity to view life from a different perspective. It was interesting to see such selfishness in characters. Highly recommend as it is very easy to read and contains great talking points.

I really enjoyed this hit from Kiley Reid. I loved her exploration of race and power dynamics through the relationships presented in Such a Fun Age.

Such a Fun Age is a fun, fast-paced read that packs quite a punch underneath. @kileyreid handles all the shades of how race AND class impact every one of us. It may make you feel uncomfortable acknowledging some of your own biases and prejudices. It will definitely make you think.

This one would be great for a buddy read or book club if you haven’t read it (even @reesesbookclub thinks so too!). And if you’re trying to read more Own Voices this year, I’d recommend it in a heartbeat. It was my first five star read of the year. “I don’t need you to be mad that it happened. I need you to be mad that it just like .... happens.” Kiley Reid, Such a Fun Age.

Such a phenomenal book! Emira and her friends are true-to-life and brazenly authentic, while the narrative itself vibrates with sharp social commentary and insight. I highly recommend this book! I was a bit put off by the ending, but everything up to that point was fantastic.

Such a Fun Age

4 stars


Thought provoking, intriguing book. Emira is our celebrating her friends birthday when she gets a call from her boss Alix, who ask her to come babysit for two hours because they have an emergency. Emira says yes because she has 72.00 in her account and she can make a lot if she does it. She warns her boss that she is dressed for a party and babysitting. Alix insist that it doesn’t matter. Emira takes 2 year old Briar to the grocery store around the corner because Briar likes to look at the bugs and smell the tea. Her friend comes with her. They start dancing in the isles and an older white woman alerts security because she thinks it is suspicious that they have a young white girl with them. A stranger records the incident because he things Emira should report the security guard. Emira calls Briar’s father to come resolve the issues. Briars dad comes and takes Briar and Emira is allowed to leave. The stranger wants her to leak the video, or sue or get the guard fired. Emira doesn’t want anyone to know. Alix is worries that it’s her fault for having her babysit so late or go to that market. Emira doesn’t want to discuss it. She meets the man again in the train and they begin dating. I would definitely recommend the book. I wish I got more questions answered or that thing’s resolved themselves differently but I think maybe that’s the point. Sometimes life works that way.

Thank you so much to the publisher and Net Galley for my copy of Such a Fun Age.
I like reading books that make me uncomfortable. I enjoy reading books that challenge me. Kiley Reid does that in the best way with Such a Fun Age. This compulsively readable book tackles so many issues in a fascinating way. This book delves into class issues, race issues both in blatant and not so obvious ways.
These characters get under your skin from the very beginning and you’re left turning the pages trying to figure them out. You care about the outcome but you’re cringing to find out what could come next. This book is a great look at the disparities in our world and it helps give a starting point to figure out where we should go. Thank you for this wonderful work that everyone should read.

4.5⭐️

I’m not entirely sure what I expected out of this book, but it definitely is not what I thought it would be. But in a totally good way.

I absolutely LOVED Kiley Reid’s writing style. She was fast paced, quick witted, and kept me wanting more and more until I reached the end. At times this felt almost like a thriller novel.

This story centers around Emira, a babysitter for a wealthy white family who is accused of kidnapping the toddler she watches one night while at the grocery store, and it deals with the aftermath of that I cider as she continues to work for the family. But this story delves so much more deeper than that. It’s also about Emira who is 26 years old and is struggling to find out what she actually wants to do with her life when everyone else around her seems to have it figured out. She also meets a guy and is trying to determine if he really likes her for her or the idea of her, and when it turns out he has a past with her boss, it complicates things.

This book touched on the racial divide, on privilege, on toxic relationships and on the forgotten children of selfish parents.

I loved Emira’s friends, they were easily the best characters in this story. And while I won’t spoil anything, I absolutely loved the ending and resolution of this book as well.

I know this is a really popular book, but it wasn't a favorite for me. Of course the topic and theme are largely relevant and I love the ideas and conundrums it surfaces. Who was in the wrong (even though INTENTIONS were in the right place) and even who was worse in terms of being anti-racist? Ultimately, intentions don't matter, our actions do, and we all have so much to learn.

I found the writing style and dialogue a bit juvenile and frankly annoying. It was lacking a depth and layeredness that I enjoy in books. The writing almost read like a YA novel.

If you're looking for a more serious book that speaks to racism with more depth I might look at The Nickel Boys, Sing, Unburied, Sing or Girl, Women, Other.

This book highlights the race issue ongoing in this country. Loved the relationship between the nanny and the daughter.

I really loved Kiley Reid’s debut novel - the last half really flew by. It tells the story of Emira, a young black woman who is wrongly accused of kidnapping the white child she is babysitting. Emira ends up dating Kelley, the white man who videotaped her altercation in the supermarket and who urges her to share the video publicly. Meanwhile, Emira loves being Briar’s sitter but is not a fan of Briar’s mom, Alix, who desperately tries to be friends with Emira. The author did an excellent job of creating tension as the story bounces between Alix and Emira’s perspectives and there are a few twists that keep readers on their toes and desperate to discover how the story ends. The book examines racism and the “white savior” complex, with Alix and Kelley both accusing the other of being racist in the way they treat Emira and other black people in their lives.

This book was a 3.5 star for me. I enjoyed the beginning, the middle was just ok and I sort of liked the ending. The ending where it flash backed to Alix finding the letters and still lying about it, totally turned me off. After that flash back, it made Alix seem even worse then she was made to be in the book. She ruined someone’s life, for no reason.

I really enjoyed Emira’s character, and the growth she went through. By the end she was a strong women, fighting for what she wanted.

I do hope that Alix became a better mother to Briar. We never got a sense at that at the end of the book.

All in all, it was a good book. The author in my opinion gave us the readers a look into race and white privilege.

I'm not sure how to review this book. It was not at all what I was expecting (but in a good way). There was a lot more levity to the story telling than I expected. I found that I really enjoyed all of the characters - even the well meaning one with a bit of a savior complex.