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Such a Fun Age
A striking and surprising debut novel from an exhilarating new voice, Such a Fun Age is a page-turning and big-hearted story about race and privilege, set around a young black babysitter, her well-intentioned employer, and a surprising connection that threatens to undo them both.
Alix Chamberlain is a woman who gets what she wants and has made a living, with her confidence-driven brand, showing other women how to do the same. So she is shocked when her babysitter, Emira Tucker, is confronted while watching the Chamberlains' toddler one night, walking the aisles of their local high-end supermarket. The store's security guard, seeing a young black woman out late with a white child, accuses Emira of kidnapping two-year-old Briar. A small crowd gathers, a bystander films everything, and Emira is furious and humiliated. Alix resolves to make things right.
But Emira herself is aimless, broke, and wary of Alix's desire to help. At twenty-five, she is about to lose her health insurance and has no idea what to do with her life. When the video of Emira unearths someone from Alix's past, both women find themselves on a crash course that will upend everything they think they know about themselves, and each other.
With empathy and piercing social commentary, Such a Fun Age explores the stickiness of transactional relationships, what it means to make someone family, and the complicated reality of being a grown up. It is a searing debut for our times.
Alix Chamberlain is a woman who gets what she wants and has made a living, with her confidence-driven brand, showing other women how to do the same. So she is shocked when her babysitter, Emira Tucker, is confronted while watching the Chamberlains' toddler one night, walking the aisles of their local high-end supermarket. The store's security guard, seeing a young black woman out late with a white child, accuses Emira of kidnapping two-year-old Briar. A small crowd gathers, a bystander films everything, and Emira is furious and humiliated. Alix resolves to make things right.
But Emira herself is aimless, broke, and wary of Alix's desire to help. At twenty-five, she is about to lose her health insurance and has no idea what to do with her life. When the video of Emira unearths someone from Alix's past, both women find themselves on a crash course that will upend everything they think they know about themselves, and each other.
With empathy and piercing social commentary, Such a Fun Age explores the stickiness of transactional relationships, what it means to make someone family, and the complicated reality of being a grown up. It is a searing debut for our times.
310 pages, Hardcover
First published December 31, 2019
About the author
Kiley Reid
7 books4,663 followersKiley Reid (born 1984) is an American novelist. She is a recent graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop where she was the recipient of the Truman Capote Fellowship. She lives in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Such A Fun Age is her first novel.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 41,930 reviews
August 11, 2022
Narratives about race and privilege are not unfamiliar literary fodder, but in her novel, Reid takes on the monumental challenge of revealing the present state of the United States through what she calls the “everyday domestic biases that we don’t even know we have.” Reid’s exploration is a fresh and interesting look at the uneasy performance of “wokeness”—a paper-thin tissue of a word, so conspicuous that it now immediately breeds distrust.
At the outset of the novel, Emira Tucker, a young Black woman, is accosted by a security guard in an upscale grocery store in Philadelphia and accused of kidnapping the white toddler she’s babysitting. The scene is unnerving, devastating, and all-too-familiar, but rather than dwell on the racial and political implications of this terrible, defining incident, Reid almost speeds through it, and so does Emira, who chooses to give the whole affair the shake of the head she believes it deserves, and turns her mind to the far more preoccupying matter of her inching closer to her 25th birthday and towards the inevitability of being kicked-out of her parents’ health insurance.
The author’s choice, however, doesn’t make these details any less affecting, and suggests them, instead, as an essential context for the relationship that lays at the heart of the novel: between Emira and her employer, Alix Chamberlain, a white wealthy influencer who built her career writing letters, an endeavor that carried her forward into a disappointing, grown-up, settled existence in Philadelphia.
Such a Fun Age is a smartly and solidly told novel. The author's prose is incisive and lived-in, and I like how it reads as though carefully culled from years of listening in on private conversations. It makes for such an intimate read. But the book’s biggest fascination for me is how the author successfully manages to hide barbed, little truths in her otherwise lightweight yarn, while still conveying a very powerful and clear-headed message.
This is made most manifest in the characters of Alix Chamberlain, who feels she has earned her "woke" badge and prides herself on that fact. But after the incident at the supermarket, Alix decides to “wake the fuck up” and “get to know Emira better”. This wake-up call is followed by an immediate urge to announce her newly invigorated self-awareness to Emira, hoping for recognition, for some kind of affirmation of the work Alix has done on herself. Alix is desperate for Emira to know “that one of Alix’s closest friends was also black. That Alix’s new and favorite shoes were from Payless, and only cost eighteen dollars. That Alix had read everything that Toni Morrison had ever written.”
This sudden warmth and clamoring for friendship, which seems to presume upon some happy old intimacy Alix and Emira did not share, throws Emira into awkwardness, and soon, Alix’s well-meaning words and best efforts to cultivate an image of herself as being politically aware and endlessly woke fall flat (which often made for an intense experience of second-hand embarrassment). The reader sees what Alix refuses to acknowledge: that she is too caught in the weave of her poor fumbling attempts at identifying with Emira (even going as far as peering on the notifications displayed on the lock-screen of Emira’s phone, mining for answers about her social life) that she becomes incognizant of her own remarkable lack of self-awareness. After all, outside the friendly remarks and overtly friendly behavior, there remained the central idea that Alix, selfishly, just didn’t want Emira to quit her job.
Reid’s subtle evisceration of these woke wannabes—every person of color will recognize in the deftly rendered characters at least a few people they’ve had the misfortune of encountering in real life—might be even more bracing at close range. People love the idea of being “woke”, even if they don’t know what to do with it. Even if they only know how to do exactly the wrong thing. They want to be considered progressive, and want everyone else to know just how progressive they are. But these efforts, while they create the illusion of reflectiveness and depth, are in fact brittle and shallow as a mirror. Some people do acknowledge the benefits that accrue to them by means of their white privilege, carefully listen, and do their best to amplify the voices of their marginalized counterparts. But many utterly fail to recognize the prejudices in themselves, and like Alix, feel compelled to assert a kind of spurious decency: they claim to be aware and yet are, sadly, incredibly lacking in any kind of self-awareness.
Though the ending feels a little abrupt and does not resonate as strongly as the rest of the novel, Such a Fun Age succeeds at the things it sets out to do with brilliance and verve.
At the outset of the novel, Emira Tucker, a young Black woman, is accosted by a security guard in an upscale grocery store in Philadelphia and accused of kidnapping the white toddler she’s babysitting. The scene is unnerving, devastating, and all-too-familiar, but rather than dwell on the racial and political implications of this terrible, defining incident, Reid almost speeds through it, and so does Emira, who chooses to give the whole affair the shake of the head she believes it deserves, and turns her mind to the far more preoccupying matter of her inching closer to her 25th birthday and towards the inevitability of being kicked-out of her parents’ health insurance.
The author’s choice, however, doesn’t make these details any less affecting, and suggests them, instead, as an essential context for the relationship that lays at the heart of the novel: between Emira and her employer, Alix Chamberlain, a white wealthy influencer who built her career writing letters, an endeavor that carried her forward into a disappointing, grown-up, settled existence in Philadelphia.
Such a Fun Age is a smartly and solidly told novel. The author's prose is incisive and lived-in, and I like how it reads as though carefully culled from years of listening in on private conversations. It makes for such an intimate read. But the book’s biggest fascination for me is how the author successfully manages to hide barbed, little truths in her otherwise lightweight yarn, while still conveying a very powerful and clear-headed message.
This is made most manifest in the characters of Alix Chamberlain, who feels she has earned her "woke" badge and prides herself on that fact. But after the incident at the supermarket, Alix decides to “wake the fuck up” and “get to know Emira better”. This wake-up call is followed by an immediate urge to announce her newly invigorated self-awareness to Emira, hoping for recognition, for some kind of affirmation of the work Alix has done on herself. Alix is desperate for Emira to know “that one of Alix’s closest friends was also black. That Alix’s new and favorite shoes were from Payless, and only cost eighteen dollars. That Alix had read everything that Toni Morrison had ever written.”
This sudden warmth and clamoring for friendship, which seems to presume upon some happy old intimacy Alix and Emira did not share, throws Emira into awkwardness, and soon, Alix’s well-meaning words and best efforts to cultivate an image of herself as being politically aware and endlessly woke fall flat (which often made for an intense experience of second-hand embarrassment). The reader sees what Alix refuses to acknowledge: that she is too caught in the weave of her poor fumbling attempts at identifying with Emira (even going as far as peering on the notifications displayed on the lock-screen of Emira’s phone, mining for answers about her social life) that she becomes incognizant of her own remarkable lack of self-awareness. After all, outside the friendly remarks and overtly friendly behavior, there remained the central idea that Alix, selfishly, just didn’t want Emira to quit her job.
Reid’s subtle evisceration of these woke wannabes—every person of color will recognize in the deftly rendered characters at least a few people they’ve had the misfortune of encountering in real life—might be even more bracing at close range. People love the idea of being “woke”, even if they don’t know what to do with it. Even if they only know how to do exactly the wrong thing. They want to be considered progressive, and want everyone else to know just how progressive they are. But these efforts, while they create the illusion of reflectiveness and depth, are in fact brittle and shallow as a mirror. Some people do acknowledge the benefits that accrue to them by means of their white privilege, carefully listen, and do their best to amplify the voices of their marginalized counterparts. But many utterly fail to recognize the prejudices in themselves, and like Alix, feel compelled to assert a kind of spurious decency: they claim to be aware and yet are, sadly, incredibly lacking in any kind of self-awareness.
Though the ending feels a little abrupt and does not resonate as strongly as the rest of the novel, Such a Fun Age succeeds at the things it sets out to do with brilliance and verve.
January 3, 2020
I pre-ordered this book because of the premise. The complexity of what happens at the cross-section of racial stereotypes, especially with differing points of view, seemed compelling.
I spent 80% of this book FURIOUS. For context, I’m a black woman, and that influenced how I read this book.
Almost all of the characters in this book were infuriating. The character of Emira, the 25-year old college graduate with no real future, comes across as undeveloped. She’s written with three different personas: the sweet and seemingly only woman to understand and cherish three-year-old Briar (who’s complex personality is confusing for such a little person but okay); the quiet and almost uneducated employee of Alix (some of the interactions had me wondering about Temple’s degree program); and a partying, mid-twenties friend and girlfriend that is depicted as the “real” Emira. The problem is, none of the personas are written well – they all felt like underdeveloped caricatures that needed more complexity. Emira stresses about job security and health insurance the entire book, to the point of being jealous of her friend’s successes and having valid fears about paying bills – yet she didn’t start applying for ANY jobs until her friends made her? It’s one thing to not know your place in life after college; it’s another to seemingly not know how to put yourself in any position to better your situation. This is made clear over and over again. Emira, despite being surrounded by resources of all types, knows nothing about how to do better for herself. This mindset is exactly what Alix preys on, and where the complex of saviorism comes into play.
Moving on to Alix. The entitlement and saviorism had me livid. I will say that I appreciated the insight into her thinking, especially when she was talking with her friends. Alix’s perspective is one that I know exists, but never will truly understand. I will never know what it could be like to be a white woman with the world – and people - at her fingertips. The best writing in this book was with Tamra, Jodi and Rachel because in those moments, I could truly appreciate the dilemmas that Alix felt she had. Otherwise, she was selfish, unaware, entitled and absolutely disgusting. Her depiction of the hell of her senior year felt overexaggerated for her to still be affected 15 years later. She’s clearly done well for herself - get over it. To find out that *spoiler alerts in the remainder of this paragraph* Kelley was right about the letter after all, and that she chose to play out a victim narrative for FIFTEEN YEARS is exactly what’s wrong with the world today. Before I found out that she invited Robbie to her house unintentionally, I didn’t have a problem with her calling the police. In that moment, those kids were trespassing on her property without her permission. But knowing that SHE KNEW at the end? GAH.
I’m so furious I almost can’t finish this review. But here are a few shorter thoughts to wrap up what’s quickly becoming a novel.
Kelley: I can’t decide if Kelley truly fetishizes black people/culture. His only interactions with white people were always negative – is this why he gravitates to black people or the othe way around? I don’t know. Alix went out of her way to find out that Kelley’s other girlfriends were all “lightskinned” or “exotic” and that Emira was the exception. Yet another white person in this novel who wants to save a black person, especially one with darker skin.
Tamra: Yet someone else trying to save Emira, but this is supposed to be okay because black on black saviorism is okay. Yeah, no.
Emira’s friends: love the support system but the characterization of slang, dress, affectation, etc. is over the top. It’s possible to be relaxed with your friends and speak properly, I promise.
And then the ending? *SPOILER ALERT* What was truly resolved? Emira’s still undecided what to do with life, even after her boss literally told her to move up and on. Briar is seemingly still ignored, although it’s unclear if there’s a new black nanny in the picture. No changes from Kelley either, just back to his standard black arm candy to make himself feel better about his life choices.
It only gets a two for the friendship stories – those were well written. Outside of that, I’d give this zero stars if I could and I could have done without reading this book.
I spent 80% of this book FURIOUS. For context, I’m a black woman, and that influenced how I read this book.
Almost all of the characters in this book were infuriating. The character of Emira, the 25-year old college graduate with no real future, comes across as undeveloped. She’s written with three different personas: the sweet and seemingly only woman to understand and cherish three-year-old Briar (who’s complex personality is confusing for such a little person but okay); the quiet and almost uneducated employee of Alix (some of the interactions had me wondering about Temple’s degree program); and a partying, mid-twenties friend and girlfriend that is depicted as the “real” Emira. The problem is, none of the personas are written well – they all felt like underdeveloped caricatures that needed more complexity. Emira stresses about job security and health insurance the entire book, to the point of being jealous of her friend’s successes and having valid fears about paying bills – yet she didn’t start applying for ANY jobs until her friends made her? It’s one thing to not know your place in life after college; it’s another to seemingly not know how to put yourself in any position to better your situation. This is made clear over and over again. Emira, despite being surrounded by resources of all types, knows nothing about how to do better for herself. This mindset is exactly what Alix preys on, and where the complex of saviorism comes into play.
Moving on to Alix. The entitlement and saviorism had me livid. I will say that I appreciated the insight into her thinking, especially when she was talking with her friends. Alix’s perspective is one that I know exists, but never will truly understand. I will never know what it could be like to be a white woman with the world – and people - at her fingertips. The best writing in this book was with Tamra, Jodi and Rachel because in those moments, I could truly appreciate the dilemmas that Alix felt she had. Otherwise, she was selfish, unaware, entitled and absolutely disgusting. Her depiction of the hell of her senior year felt overexaggerated for her to still be affected 15 years later. She’s clearly done well for herself - get over it. To find out that *spoiler alerts in the remainder of this paragraph* Kelley was right about the letter after all, and that she chose to play out a victim narrative for FIFTEEN YEARS is exactly what’s wrong with the world today. Before I found out that she invited Robbie to her house unintentionally, I didn’t have a problem with her calling the police. In that moment, those kids were trespassing on her property without her permission. But knowing that SHE KNEW at the end? GAH.
I’m so furious I almost can’t finish this review. But here are a few shorter thoughts to wrap up what’s quickly becoming a novel.
Kelley: I can’t decide if Kelley truly fetishizes black people/culture. His only interactions with white people were always negative – is this why he gravitates to black people or the othe way around? I don’t know. Alix went out of her way to find out that Kelley’s other girlfriends were all “lightskinned” or “exotic” and that Emira was the exception. Yet another white person in this novel who wants to save a black person, especially one with darker skin.
Tamra: Yet someone else trying to save Emira, but this is supposed to be okay because black on black saviorism is okay. Yeah, no.
Emira’s friends: love the support system but the characterization of slang, dress, affectation, etc. is over the top. It’s possible to be relaxed with your friends and speak properly, I promise.
And then the ending? *SPOILER ALERT* What was truly resolved? Emira’s still undecided what to do with life, even after her boss literally told her to move up and on. Briar is seemingly still ignored, although it’s unclear if there’s a new black nanny in the picture. No changes from Kelley either, just back to his standard black arm candy to make himself feel better about his life choices.
It only gets a two for the friendship stories – those were well written. Outside of that, I’d give this zero stars if I could and I could have done without reading this book.
January 7, 2020
Wow. The writing in this book is so light and breezy and easy to read that it can take a while to appreciate the depths the author takes us to in Such a Fun Age. Combine the compelling writing with a cute font on the cover and this book is seriously deceiving.
You know, this book reminded me of some of the criticisms others and myself had about The Help. I feel like I have to be careful here because even now, ten years later, there are people who love that book so much that they kiss it before they go to bed each night. But The Help honestly seemed to me like a way for white folks to make themselves feel better about the way they behaved during Jim Crow segregation. Total white lady saviour vibe.
This book is like what would have happened if Abilene had called Skeeter out and told her to go be a hero somewhere else. Of course, Such a Fun Age is set in 2015 and not the 1960s so the circumstances are different but, alarmingly, not that different.
Such a Fun Age is about two women-- Emira Tucker and Alix Chamberlain. Emira is a young black babysitter for the Chamberlains' eldest daughter, Briar, and is currently juggling two jobs as she struggles to pay rent, keep her healthcare, and figure out what she wants to do with her life. Alix Chamberlain is a wealthy white blogger and minor social media celebrity who battles doubts and insecurities, all while on the surface maintaining a facade that she has everything she ever wanted.
When Emira is stopped by a security guard at a fancy grocery store and accused of kidnapping Briar, everything changes. The moment is caught on camera and, though Emira is determined to forget all about it, both Alix and the bystander who filmed it want to make things right and get justice for Emira.
It's a very engaging contemporary novel with a lot of nuance. Though it is clearly a critique of "white saviours", Reid is careful not to let the characters fall into one-dimensional stereotypes. She uses these fully-fleshed out characters to explore the way well-meaning white people often overstep and actually make black people's lives harder. "Protecting" and "helping" as a means of control is nothing new, but the author really shines a light on the way white liberals use these words to take over situations and narratives.
Plus it's also just a really great story about two very different women, all their quirks and habits, and what happens when their lives intersect.
The only thing that was a little disappointing was the way it ended.
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You know, this book reminded me of some of the criticisms others and myself had about The Help. I feel like I have to be careful here because even now, ten years later, there are people who love that book so much that they kiss it before they go to bed each night. But The Help honestly seemed to me like a way for white folks to make themselves feel better about the way they behaved during Jim Crow segregation. Total white lady saviour vibe.
This book is like what would have happened if Abilene had called Skeeter out and told her to go be a hero somewhere else. Of course, Such a Fun Age is set in 2015 and not the 1960s so the circumstances are different but, alarmingly, not that different.
Such a Fun Age is about two women-- Emira Tucker and Alix Chamberlain. Emira is a young black babysitter for the Chamberlains' eldest daughter, Briar, and is currently juggling two jobs as she struggles to pay rent, keep her healthcare, and figure out what she wants to do with her life. Alix Chamberlain is a wealthy white blogger and minor social media celebrity who battles doubts and insecurities, all while on the surface maintaining a facade that she has everything she ever wanted.
When Emira is stopped by a security guard at a fancy grocery store and accused of kidnapping Briar, everything changes. The moment is caught on camera and, though Emira is determined to forget all about it, both Alix and the bystander who filmed it want to make things right and get justice for Emira.
It's a very engaging contemporary novel with a lot of nuance. Though it is clearly a critique of "white saviours", Reid is careful not to let the characters fall into one-dimensional stereotypes. She uses these fully-fleshed out characters to explore the way well-meaning white people often overstep and actually make black people's lives harder. "Protecting" and "helping" as a means of control is nothing new, but the author really shines a light on the way white liberals use these words to take over situations and narratives.
Plus it's also just a really great story about two very different women, all their quirks and habits, and what happens when their lives intersect.
The only thing that was a little disappointing was the way it ended.
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April 7, 2022
Wow! Okay! I don’t know what I have to feel about this book. Did I like it? Mostly I did. But as soon as I finish, I felt like something missing. Maybe I didn’t like how the things ended for the characters and I wished alternate solutions for their stories.
I enjoyed the writing and intercepted lives of two female protagonists, the development and progression, objective and genuine approach of racism, diversity, hypocritical attitudes of the people. At the end of the story I lost my love for Alixa and wanted to kick her ass so bad and shook Emira’s shoulders so hard to force her get a grip. I still stick with 3.5 stars and of course I will round them up to 4 because the story really got imprinted on my mind and I wanted to learn what’s gonna happen , how the interwoven relationship dynamics will change the characters’ lives and what kind of revelations will come out.
So we have a privileged, wealthy, blogger Alixa Chamberlain, living her dream life but it’s still something missing about her. She’s insecure, not quite satisfied with her new appearance after having her new baby, questioning her life choices. Our other protagonist Emira Tucker, nanny ( correction: babysitter as Alixa calls he, making her wear a uniform, yes like younger version of Viola Davis from “Help” movie) of Alixa’s elder daughter Briar, trying so hard to make her ends meet by working at two jobs and pushing hard to pay her rent and keep her health insurance.
One day, at eleven p.m. Alixa calls Emira urgently to take her daughter to the grocery store.(Awkward request alert! Of course nothing good will come out after strange demands) So Emira leaves her friends, still wearing her party clothes and a little tipsy to help her employers but surprisingly security guard at the grocery store interrogates her and gets suspicious that she kidnapped Briar. As soon as Alixa’s husband Peter arrives to the store, the problem solves and Emira wants to forget all of this humiliated misunderstanding even though somebody filmed everything to make things right and emailed the video to her.
Then that somebody from the grocery store runs into Emira at the train: a good looking, tall, witty man named Kelley and they start to see each other. So as you may imagine even the one of the worst nights of her life helps her to meet with her new boyfriend. But well… this coincidental beginning and her humiliating experience will be the key of Pandora’s box and helps all hell breaks loose. It will affect both of Emira and Alixa’s lives.
Alixa is selfish, insecure and a little immature character. Most of the book I loved her craziness, her passionate approach to Emira which makes her cross the line between protectiveness and obsessiveness. But at the end some big revelations about her made me lose my sympathy for the character and as some parts I found Emira, a little lost, aimless, confused. If she was younger than 25, I may understand how she lost the tracks of her own life or if there was any tragic background story tells that why she prefers only existing instead of finding her passion about life.
Overall: I loved the pure, objective, riveting writing style and the author’s approach to the sensitive matters. I partly loved the characters and their relationship dynamics, the big revelations and the story’s direction after everything is getting out of control. Only thing I didn’t like the conclusions of characters’ stories. But this is still interesting, fast pacing and promising reading. I’m happy to start the year by finishing this reading. So yes it may be considered as a winner!
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I enjoyed the writing and intercepted lives of two female protagonists, the development and progression, objective and genuine approach of racism, diversity, hypocritical attitudes of the people. At the end of the story I lost my love for Alixa and wanted to kick her ass so bad and shook Emira’s shoulders so hard to force her get a grip. I still stick with 3.5 stars and of course I will round them up to 4 because the story really got imprinted on my mind and I wanted to learn what’s gonna happen , how the interwoven relationship dynamics will change the characters’ lives and what kind of revelations will come out.
So we have a privileged, wealthy, blogger Alixa Chamberlain, living her dream life but it’s still something missing about her. She’s insecure, not quite satisfied with her new appearance after having her new baby, questioning her life choices. Our other protagonist Emira Tucker, nanny ( correction: babysitter as Alixa calls he, making her wear a uniform, yes like younger version of Viola Davis from “Help” movie) of Alixa’s elder daughter Briar, trying so hard to make her ends meet by working at two jobs and pushing hard to pay her rent and keep her health insurance.
One day, at eleven p.m. Alixa calls Emira urgently to take her daughter to the grocery store.(Awkward request alert! Of course nothing good will come out after strange demands) So Emira leaves her friends, still wearing her party clothes and a little tipsy to help her employers but surprisingly security guard at the grocery store interrogates her and gets suspicious that she kidnapped Briar. As soon as Alixa’s husband Peter arrives to the store, the problem solves and Emira wants to forget all of this humiliated misunderstanding even though somebody filmed everything to make things right and emailed the video to her.
Then that somebody from the grocery store runs into Emira at the train: a good looking, tall, witty man named Kelley and they start to see each other. So as you may imagine even the one of the worst nights of her life helps her to meet with her new boyfriend. But well… this coincidental beginning and her humiliating experience will be the key of Pandora’s box and helps all hell breaks loose. It will affect both of Emira and Alixa’s lives.
Alixa is selfish, insecure and a little immature character. Most of the book I loved her craziness, her passionate approach to Emira which makes her cross the line between protectiveness and obsessiveness. But at the end some big revelations about her made me lose my sympathy for the character and as some parts I found Emira, a little lost, aimless, confused. If she was younger than 25, I may understand how she lost the tracks of her own life or if there was any tragic background story tells that why she prefers only existing instead of finding her passion about life.
Overall: I loved the pure, objective, riveting writing style and the author’s approach to the sensitive matters. I partly loved the characters and their relationship dynamics, the big revelations and the story’s direction after everything is getting out of control. Only thing I didn’t like the conclusions of characters’ stories. But this is still interesting, fast pacing and promising reading. I’m happy to start the year by finishing this reading. So yes it may be considered as a winner!
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September 12, 2020
While this is a simplistic story, it’s still a very accurate portrayal of performative activism and woke culture. I recognized so many of the central characters within people who exist in real life. I found myself nodding along to the book’s portrayals of liberal white allyship and the way people often believe their own self-serving narratives. I think because of the simplistic nature of the storyline though, the book was a little predictable and didn’t totally blow me away with new revelations, which is why I haven’t bumped it up to 5 stars. It’s still very relevant though, and I think people who have experienced these types of characters IRL will appreciate the way the author has tackled this story.
June 20, 2021
One of the easiest 5-star reviews I've ever given. This book deals with complicated ideas and nuances regarding race and privilege, but does so in a writing style so accessible that your forget you're reading. The descriptions and dialogue are so vivid, authentic, and visual that you feel fully immersed in the narrative. I couldn't put it down.
January 11, 2020
Entertaining mostly towards the end. For a debut novel it wasn’t terrible, but I most definitely felt like I was reading a book written about black struggles by a white woman. The dialogue was also fucking atrocious.
August 11, 2020
the plot of this was super gripping (i read it in like 12 hours???) and i enjoyed the strong message that was woven throughout. interested to see how this author grows as she publishes more books.
March 19, 2020
i absolutely adore reese witherspoon and enjoy her book club choices, but this one isnt quite the hit i was expecting it to be, unfortunately.
i appreciate the dialogue this story opens about heavy topics such as racial inequality and ‘white saviour’ complexes. racism is a topic that tends to be discussed in fiction, but focuses more on the aggressive and antagonistic part of it. this is the first novel ive read where white people treat POC fairly, but only because they think it makes them a good person/better than everyone else. its just another form of racism that i havent considered much and is really eye-opening.
that being said, i couldnt get on board with the writing. i understand this is a debut novel, but wow. the writing just did not click for me. its disjointed, has no flow or pacing, the dialogue is either forced or cringy, and it does not leave room for me to bond or relate to any of the characters. its quite unfortunate.
the message of the story is important, i just wish it had been executed a little bit better.
↠ 2.5 stars
i appreciate the dialogue this story opens about heavy topics such as racial inequality and ‘white saviour’ complexes. racism is a topic that tends to be discussed in fiction, but focuses more on the aggressive and antagonistic part of it. this is the first novel ive read where white people treat POC fairly, but only because they think it makes them a good person/better than everyone else. its just another form of racism that i havent considered much and is really eye-opening.
that being said, i couldnt get on board with the writing. i understand this is a debut novel, but wow. the writing just did not click for me. its disjointed, has no flow or pacing, the dialogue is either forced or cringy, and it does not leave room for me to bond or relate to any of the characters. its quite unfortunate.
the message of the story is important, i just wish it had been executed a little bit better.
↠ 2.5 stars
February 18, 2020
2.5 stars. An easy read that lacked the emotional connection and powerful punch that I had expected.
This book is all the buzz lately. I couldn’t wait to dig in and see what all the hype was about. I’m not sure if the overhyping is what made me feel like I was missing something or this simply wasn’t a powerful book for me. Yes, there are some very heavy topics covered within these pages, but the way they are presented didn’t impact or resonate with me.
From start to finish the narrative made me feel distanced from the characters and storyline. I never felt completely immersed in their lives. It was like I was being told this story without being given the opportunity to truly experience it. Often times the dialogue felt awkward and somewhat forced which further distanced me from the characters. I didn’t like the way the changing perspectives overlapped - it often felt choppy and lacked flow.
Overall, it was an easy, quick read, but not one that lived up to my expectations. Please read the many raving reviews before deciding on this book, as I am clearly the outlier.
Thank you to Edelweiss for my review copy!
This book is all the buzz lately. I couldn’t wait to dig in and see what all the hype was about. I’m not sure if the overhyping is what made me feel like I was missing something or this simply wasn’t a powerful book for me. Yes, there are some very heavy topics covered within these pages, but the way they are presented didn’t impact or resonate with me.
From start to finish the narrative made me feel distanced from the characters and storyline. I never felt completely immersed in their lives. It was like I was being told this story without being given the opportunity to truly experience it. Often times the dialogue felt awkward and somewhat forced which further distanced me from the characters. I didn’t like the way the changing perspectives overlapped - it often felt choppy and lacked flow.
Overall, it was an easy, quick read, but not one that lived up to my expectations. Please read the many raving reviews before deciding on this book, as I am clearly the outlier.
Thank you to Edelweiss for my review copy!
November 13, 2023
It turns out I don't know everything.
For example: I would have thought I knew what I wanted from this book. Before I read it, I had an idea of it. While I was reading it, I thought I knew how it would go. And as I approached the ending, I thought I knew how I wanted things to finish.
I was wrong about ALL OF IT.
This was a million times cleverer and funnier and one-of-a-kind brilliant whatever than anything my dumb old brain could come up with.
For once I am not in the right, and for even rarer I am okay with that.
Bottom line: Listen to Kiley Reid, not me!
--------------
pre-review
literally, i'm sitting here silently typing this pre-review, but metaphorically and still in a very real way, i'm screaming forever because of this.
review to come / 4.5 stars
--------------
tbr review
love to read the book everyone was reading ages after everyone's already read it
For example: I would have thought I knew what I wanted from this book. Before I read it, I had an idea of it. While I was reading it, I thought I knew how it would go. And as I approached the ending, I thought I knew how I wanted things to finish.
I was wrong about ALL OF IT.
This was a million times cleverer and funnier and one-of-a-kind brilliant whatever than anything my dumb old brain could come up with.
For once I am not in the right, and for even rarer I am okay with that.
Bottom line: Listen to Kiley Reid, not me!
--------------
pre-review
literally, i'm sitting here silently typing this pre-review, but metaphorically and still in a very real way, i'm screaming forever because of this.
review to come / 4.5 stars
--------------
tbr review
love to read the book everyone was reading ages after everyone's already read it
August 27, 2020
4.5 stars
There are books I read for the pure pleasure of the storytelling and there are books I read to make me think. Occasionally a book comes along that does both, without it being an “issue book”. This is one of those books.
One of the best ways to make a point is through witty satire, through stereotypical characters who are ridiculous, yet compulsively readable. Taking the biggest hit in this book are the progressive “woke” individuals who are so fearful of appearing racist, so convinced that they aren’t racist, that they lack self-awareness.
Alix (pronounced Ah-Leeks) Chamberlain is an entitled, progressive, white woman in her 30s who is a blogger and Instagram influencer. Emira is a college-educated black woman in her mid-20s, uncertain and confused about what she wants to do with her life. Emira is hired by Alix to babysit her toddler daughter, Briar (who is just the sweetest!). A defining incident happens early in the book and from there we are given the perspectives of Alix and her privileged friends (who are both black and white), as well as Emira, her friends, and her (white) boyfriend.
This is so much more than a book about racial bias. It’s about race, yes, but it‘s also about social class, success, parenting, friendship, and the relationship between a nanny and the family she works for.
Bias can be subtle. It can be the hubris of thinking you know what is right for others. Everyone here seems to know what Emira needs, and are so busy "doing good" that they don't bother to really get to know Emira or her wants and needs. The road to hell is paved with good intentions and it’s never more evident than in this story.
One measure of a successful story/book is that it accomplishes what the author sets out to do. This author avoids the easy solutions and doesn’t tell us what to think. Instead she makes the reader think and examine their own feelings, opinions and actions, which can be uncomfortable indeed. The last line in the book packs quite a punch.
Do yourself a favor and grab a friend or two, and read this book together. It’s a book that begs discussion. I had the good fortune to read this book with my friends Marialyce and Victoria. Our discussions were insightful and thought-provoking, enhancing the experience beyond measure.
This is an amazing debut, and I can’t wait to see what this author writes next.
*I received a free digital copy of this book via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.
There are books I read for the pure pleasure of the storytelling and there are books I read to make me think. Occasionally a book comes along that does both, without it being an “issue book”. This is one of those books.
One of the best ways to make a point is through witty satire, through stereotypical characters who are ridiculous, yet compulsively readable. Taking the biggest hit in this book are the progressive “woke” individuals who are so fearful of appearing racist, so convinced that they aren’t racist, that they lack self-awareness.
Alix (pronounced Ah-Leeks) Chamberlain is an entitled, progressive, white woman in her 30s who is a blogger and Instagram influencer. Emira is a college-educated black woman in her mid-20s, uncertain and confused about what she wants to do with her life. Emira is hired by Alix to babysit her toddler daughter, Briar (who is just the sweetest!). A defining incident happens early in the book and from there we are given the perspectives of Alix and her privileged friends (who are both black and white), as well as Emira, her friends, and her (white) boyfriend.
This is so much more than a book about racial bias. It’s about race, yes, but it‘s also about social class, success, parenting, friendship, and the relationship between a nanny and the family she works for.
Bias can be subtle. It can be the hubris of thinking you know what is right for others. Everyone here seems to know what Emira needs, and are so busy "doing good" that they don't bother to really get to know Emira or her wants and needs. The road to hell is paved with good intentions and it’s never more evident than in this story.
One measure of a successful story/book is that it accomplishes what the author sets out to do. This author avoids the easy solutions and doesn’t tell us what to think. Instead she makes the reader think and examine their own feelings, opinions and actions, which can be uncomfortable indeed. The last line in the book packs quite a punch.
Do yourself a favor and grab a friend or two, and read this book together. It’s a book that begs discussion. I had the good fortune to read this book with my friends Marialyce and Victoria. Our discussions were insightful and thought-provoking, enhancing the experience beyond measure.
This is an amazing debut, and I can’t wait to see what this author writes next.
*I received a free digital copy of this book via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.
December 19, 2020
***WINNER GOODREADS CHOICE AWARD FOR BEST DEBUT NOVEL 2020***
This is one of those books that’s hard to review because I think if read quickly it would come across as just a good story. Reading this more slowly it’s revealed that there is much more to this book than just entertainment. It highlights lots of racial issues, from two different points of view. Alix is a successful, married white woman and Emira an “undecided” African-American woman. Alix discovered her talents quite quickly and has a thriving online business as well as lots of speaking engagements.She and her husband now have what seems to be “the good life”. She has one amazing, open hearted and apparently open mouthed (in jest here) little 3 year old daughter. She plays an important part in this novel, her name is Briar. She also has an infant daughter, about 6 months old whom she usually has with her when she works.
Enter our other main character Emira, a 25 y/o African American, college educated young women who hasn’t figured out what she wants to do with her life. To some she would appear in need of a helping hand, mentorship or whatever. In truth, however, Emira isn’t overly upset about where she is in her life, she is giving herself permission to explore different ideas and career paths.
These two women start out in the book as “boss” and “babysitter”, but Alix’s feelings for this young woman go much deeper and sometimes in a questionable way.
Here’s a good little taste of what’s to come, the big “event” that changes the trajectory of the relationship between these two women. “So she is shocked when her babysitter, Emira Tucker, is confronted while watching the Chamberlains’ toddler one night. Seeing a young black woman out late with a white child, a security guard at their local high-end supermarket accuses Emira of kidnapping two-year-old Briar. A small crowd gathers, a bystander films everything, and Emira is furious and humiliated. Alix resolves to make it right.”
Into this mix of emotions and presumptions between both Alix and Emira we add Kelley Copeland, the boy who “ruined Alix’s senior year in high school”. He presumably circulated a letter she had written. Lots of high school students descended on her home and swimming pool, one young man had his scholarship taken away because Alix called the police when the students wouldn't leave. Alix has never really gotten over Kelley and now he shows up in the most awkward position possible.
Sometimes I think that racial relationships have gotten better in the last decade but then I read a book like this and it really makes me wonder, have we really made much progress understanding each other and our differences? Are we still trying to make everyone act like white people? I had never heard the term white “saviorism” before but it was an interesting topic to contemplate. In this book I felt that both women used each other in different ways, neither was guilt free in the outcome of their story.
I can definitely recommend this book to everyone, it's a quick read with a big message!
I received an ARC of this novel from the publisher through Edelweiss. The novel is set to publish in January 2020.
This is one of those books that’s hard to review because I think if read quickly it would come across as just a good story. Reading this more slowly it’s revealed that there is much more to this book than just entertainment. It highlights lots of racial issues, from two different points of view. Alix is a successful, married white woman and Emira an “undecided” African-American woman. Alix discovered her talents quite quickly and has a thriving online business as well as lots of speaking engagements.She and her husband now have what seems to be “the good life”. She has one amazing, open hearted and apparently open mouthed (in jest here) little 3 year old daughter. She plays an important part in this novel, her name is Briar. She also has an infant daughter, about 6 months old whom she usually has with her when she works.
Enter our other main character Emira, a 25 y/o African American, college educated young women who hasn’t figured out what she wants to do with her life. To some she would appear in need of a helping hand, mentorship or whatever. In truth, however, Emira isn’t overly upset about where she is in her life, she is giving herself permission to explore different ideas and career paths.
These two women start out in the book as “boss” and “babysitter”, but Alix’s feelings for this young woman go much deeper and sometimes in a questionable way.
Here’s a good little taste of what’s to come, the big “event” that changes the trajectory of the relationship between these two women. “So she is shocked when her babysitter, Emira Tucker, is confronted while watching the Chamberlains’ toddler one night. Seeing a young black woman out late with a white child, a security guard at their local high-end supermarket accuses Emira of kidnapping two-year-old Briar. A small crowd gathers, a bystander films everything, and Emira is furious and humiliated. Alix resolves to make it right.”
Into this mix of emotions and presumptions between both Alix and Emira we add Kelley Copeland, the boy who “ruined Alix’s senior year in high school”. He presumably circulated a letter she had written. Lots of high school students descended on her home and swimming pool, one young man had his scholarship taken away because Alix called the police when the students wouldn't leave. Alix has never really gotten over Kelley and now he shows up in the most awkward position possible.
Sometimes I think that racial relationships have gotten better in the last decade but then I read a book like this and it really makes me wonder, have we really made much progress understanding each other and our differences? Are we still trying to make everyone act like white people? I had never heard the term white “saviorism” before but it was an interesting topic to contemplate. In this book I felt that both women used each other in different ways, neither was guilt free in the outcome of their story.
I can definitely recommend this book to everyone, it's a quick read with a big message!
I received an ARC of this novel from the publisher through Edelweiss. The novel is set to publish in January 2020.
January 21, 2020
I’m completely in the minority here, this book is popular and there is a reason for it, it’s readable (mostly) engaging and fun with a fresh and contemporary feel while also tackling some pretty serious issues of race and white privilege, parts of this story are great for furthering discussion about inequality and racism although I’m afraid it also perpetuates stereotypes rather than evolving them. (Perfect for book club discussion!) But what I can’t get past is the poor execution of the writing, it’s choppy and incomprehensible at times. The dialogue..don’t get me started! I understand this is a debut novel so some lenience I’ll allow for the undercooked writing. Also what’s with the title, is it meant to be ironic, I don’t get it??
January 4, 2021
4.5 Stars
December 16, 2022
It’s hard to write a review about a book that left me so undecided. I think the biggest issue I had with this novel was trying to connect with any of the characters. Besides the relationship between Emira, and her charge, which was genuine and heartwarming, the story itself failed to draw me in deeply enough to become passionate about it.
The writing was acceptable for a debut novel, but I felt the execution was choppy at times. The way the plot was structured and told, especially the backstory, sounded too clinical, and dispassionate and sometimes even disjointed. But besides that the novel was easy to read, and it had some compelling and definitely thought provoking moments.
Emira’s voice felt genuine and authentic. And her relationship with her charge was the soul and heart of this story. Whereas the relationship between mother and caregiver was unhealthy, thanks to a strange obsession from the mother's side, and brought with it a slew of other issues. Also, besides Emira and Blair (the child) none of the other characters were relatable, likable, or felt authentic. It's hard to feel passionate about a book if I feel so indifferent about the cast of characters.
Oh and the ending left much to desire.
But even though this book wasn’t as compelling for me as it was for many others. The topics and relationships depicted in this book will make for great book club material.
ARC generously provided in exchange for an honest review.
The writing was acceptable for a debut novel, but I felt the execution was choppy at times. The way the plot was structured and told, especially the backstory, sounded too clinical, and dispassionate and sometimes even disjointed. But besides that the novel was easy to read, and it had some compelling and definitely thought provoking moments.
Emira’s voice felt genuine and authentic. And her relationship with her charge was the soul and heart of this story. Whereas the relationship between mother and caregiver was unhealthy, thanks to a strange obsession from the mother's side, and brought with it a slew of other issues. Also, besides Emira and Blair (the child) none of the other characters were relatable, likable, or felt authentic. It's hard to feel passionate about a book if I feel so indifferent about the cast of characters.
Oh and the ending left much to desire.
But even though this book wasn’t as compelling for me as it was for many others. The topics and relationships depicted in this book will make for great book club material.
ARC generously provided in exchange for an honest review.
July 31, 2020
This was so fucking good.
November 24, 2019
Emira Tucker, an African American woman, was going to turn 26 years old next week....
....soon to get booted off her parents’ health insurance. She’s known for a while that her babysitting job - ( for Alix and Peter Chamberlain- white upper class couple with two small daughters), wasn’t exactly sustainable- but she needed to figure out things on her own.
Emira had a college degree...but she didn’t know what she wanted to do next.
In the meantime - Emira’s part time babysitting job covered - ‘ ‘barely’ - her monthly expenses.
She also knew that it wasn’t her job to raise 3 year old Briar. But for 21 hours a week, Blair got to matter to someone. And that mattered to Emira.
Blair & Emira were a unit!
Emira’s nickname for Briar...was pickle. Their relationship was heartwarming.
Briar was an inquisitive 3 year old....intelligent, odd and charming....and filled with humor.
Emira knew she was good at her job and it was gratifying.
Briar thought the world of Emira.
And Emira loved the ease in which she could lose her self in the rhythm of childcare.
Personally - I felt Emira was a valuable asset in Briar’s life...
Alix was often busy working - with her baby-toddler-Catherine-in-toe. Alix loved her job-loved being a working mother. She loved both her daughters and her husband.
Alix also loved Emira - the woman she paid to love chatty-adorable Briar.
Peter was working full time in TV journalism.... and wasn’t around too much.
Kelley Copeland, a white 32 year old male, was Emira’s new boyfriend.
“Emira and Kelly talked about race very little because it always seemed like they were doing it already. When she really considered a life with him, a real life, a joint-bank-account-emergency-contact-both-names-on-the-lease life, Emira almost wanted to roll her eyes and ask, ‘Are we really gonna do this? How are you gonna tell your parents?’”
“Who’s gonna teach their son that it doesn’t matter what his friends do, that he can’t stand too close to a white woman when he’s on the train or in an elevator? That he should slowly and noticeably put his keys on the roof as soon as he gets pulled over?”
Is there such a thing of being the opposite of racist? Is it possible for a white person to like a black person too much?
Alix Chamberlain, 33 years old, (who had a relationship with Kelly in High School and a ‘piercing damaging-to-others’, breakup...fifteen years ago), was saying....
“Kelley is one of those white guys who not only goes out of his way to date black women but ‘only’ wants to date black women”.
And....
“How difficult is it to tell someone, ‘hey, your boyfriend likes you for the wrong reasons?’”
One of Alix’s friends, Tamra, pitches in her point of view...
She thinks Emira is very lost.
I WASN’T SO SURE ABOUT THIS NEXT EXCERPT....but I thought about it along with many points of views examined in this TERRIFIC & REFRESHING debut...( while hiking this morning)....
“Emira is twenty-five years old and she has no idea what she wants or how to get it. She doesn’t have the motivation to maintain a real career the way our girls will have, which is probably not her fault but it doesn’t make it less true. What I’m saying is...
There are a lot of jerks like Kelley out there, but when they get hold of girls like Emira? Someone who’s still trying to figure herself out? That’s when I start to really worry. And the more I think about it, it makes a lot of sense she ended up with a guy like this. He’s looking to validate himself through someone else. She hasn’t caught on because she doesn’t know who she is”.
OUCH?
The storytelling, with the multi textured, well developed characters was fascinating, refreshing and thought-provoking.... with our own thoughts doing somersaults.
Things were very complicated from the very start of this novel. FANTASTIC PULL-IN- opening scene.
The complexities of the inner thoughts from each of the characters added authentic truth.
Haven’t we all had thoughts we were not proud of? Do we beat ourselves up for our ugly thoughts - or just notice them and let them pass? ( ha, we’ve probably all done a little of both)...
It would be so easy to judge - or point fingers at any one of our leading characters ( Emira, Alix, or Kelly) - or the supporting characters, too, for that matter....
but in my opinion - this novel provided an opportunity to get bigger than finger pointing...
instead it’s worth looking at the bigger issues at hand — and the humanity of the human condition.
Each character’s inner voice was worth examining...and worth putting our own judgements aside to ‘really’ get each one of their points of view.
TERRIFIC DEBUT, by Kiley Reid ( a new author to admire)
Discussion-book-
extravaganza!!!
....soon to get booted off her parents’ health insurance. She’s known for a while that her babysitting job - ( for Alix and Peter Chamberlain- white upper class couple with two small daughters), wasn’t exactly sustainable- but she needed to figure out things on her own.
Emira had a college degree...but she didn’t know what she wanted to do next.
In the meantime - Emira’s part time babysitting job covered - ‘ ‘barely’ - her monthly expenses.
She also knew that it wasn’t her job to raise 3 year old Briar. But for 21 hours a week, Blair got to matter to someone. And that mattered to Emira.
Blair & Emira were a unit!
Emira’s nickname for Briar...was pickle. Their relationship was heartwarming.
Briar was an inquisitive 3 year old....intelligent, odd and charming....and filled with humor.
Emira knew she was good at her job and it was gratifying.
Briar thought the world of Emira.
And Emira loved the ease in which she could lose her self in the rhythm of childcare.
Personally - I felt Emira was a valuable asset in Briar’s life...
Alix was often busy working - with her baby-toddler-Catherine-in-toe. Alix loved her job-loved being a working mother. She loved both her daughters and her husband.
Alix also loved Emira - the woman she paid to love chatty-adorable Briar.
Peter was working full time in TV journalism.... and wasn’t around too much.
Kelley Copeland, a white 32 year old male, was Emira’s new boyfriend.
“Emira and Kelly talked about race very little because it always seemed like they were doing it already. When she really considered a life with him, a real life, a joint-bank-account-emergency-contact-both-names-on-the-lease life, Emira almost wanted to roll her eyes and ask, ‘Are we really gonna do this? How are you gonna tell your parents?’”
“Who’s gonna teach their son that it doesn’t matter what his friends do, that he can’t stand too close to a white woman when he’s on the train or in an elevator? That he should slowly and noticeably put his keys on the roof as soon as he gets pulled over?”
Is there such a thing of being the opposite of racist? Is it possible for a white person to like a black person too much?
Alix Chamberlain, 33 years old, (who had a relationship with Kelly in High School and a ‘piercing damaging-to-others’, breakup...fifteen years ago), was saying....
“Kelley is one of those white guys who not only goes out of his way to date black women but ‘only’ wants to date black women”.
And....
“How difficult is it to tell someone, ‘hey, your boyfriend likes you for the wrong reasons?’”
One of Alix’s friends, Tamra, pitches in her point of view...
She thinks Emira is very lost.
I WASN’T SO SURE ABOUT THIS NEXT EXCERPT....but I thought about it along with many points of views examined in this TERRIFIC & REFRESHING debut...( while hiking this morning)....
“Emira is twenty-five years old and she has no idea what she wants or how to get it. She doesn’t have the motivation to maintain a real career the way our girls will have, which is probably not her fault but it doesn’t make it less true. What I’m saying is...
There are a lot of jerks like Kelley out there, but when they get hold of girls like Emira? Someone who’s still trying to figure herself out? That’s when I start to really worry. And the more I think about it, it makes a lot of sense she ended up with a guy like this. He’s looking to validate himself through someone else. She hasn’t caught on because she doesn’t know who she is”.
OUCH?
The storytelling, with the multi textured, well developed characters was fascinating, refreshing and thought-provoking.... with our own thoughts doing somersaults.
Things were very complicated from the very start of this novel. FANTASTIC PULL-IN- opening scene.
The complexities of the inner thoughts from each of the characters added authentic truth.
Haven’t we all had thoughts we were not proud of? Do we beat ourselves up for our ugly thoughts - or just notice them and let them pass? ( ha, we’ve probably all done a little of both)...
It would be so easy to judge - or point fingers at any one of our leading characters ( Emira, Alix, or Kelly) - or the supporting characters, too, for that matter....
but in my opinion - this novel provided an opportunity to get bigger than finger pointing...
instead it’s worth looking at the bigger issues at hand — and the humanity of the human condition.
Each character’s inner voice was worth examining...and worth putting our own judgements aside to ‘really’ get each one of their points of view.
TERRIFIC DEBUT, by Kiley Reid ( a new author to admire)
Discussion-book-
extravaganza!!!
July 5, 2022
This book was so different from what i thought it would be. Everything that it says in the synopsis happened in the first chapter so i was really worried about what the rest of the book was about. I was pleasantly surprised as i read on. This book is actually about performative activism and how white people tend to use black people to get further in their lives.
You have the main character’s boss who has a very weird obsession with the main character where she wonders what Emira- the main character goes to sleep while she’s breast feeding and you also have the white boyfriend who is the one recording the situation that happens in the first chapter and how he tends to speak over Emira at times, it shows that even white characters are trying to do right they’re still speaking over black characters.
Aside from the very important topics, this book was messy as hell and i really fuck with that.
You have the main character’s boss who has a very weird obsession with the main character where she wonders what Emira- the main character goes to sleep while she’s breast feeding and you also have the white boyfriend who is the one recording the situation that happens in the first chapter and how he tends to speak over Emira at times, it shows that even white characters are trying to do right they’re still speaking over black characters.
Aside from the very important topics, this book was messy as hell and i really fuck with that.
February 26, 2020
I feel like this book started off pretty strong, but then it just sort of lost its way.. I really enjoyed the first few chapters of this book; I like what it was trying to say about race and the way people of color get treated differently and unfairly in certain situations, and I thought it was a really great start and shedding some light on important issues. But then I feel like as soon as Kelley’s character is introduced into this book, it really lost its momentum.
The dialogue got so cringe. There were so many dialogue moments I underlined and wrote “what the fuck?” because who talks like that??? There’s literally a scene where Emira says “you’re lit” and Kelley is like “you too miss” like um, no thanks. The writing was just so bad in some parts.
And I just couldn’t get invested in these character or this story, it just wasn’t really for me. I’ve been trying to read this for weeks, which is a long time for me to get through something this short and I just don’t care enough about it.
The dialogue got so cringe. There were so many dialogue moments I underlined and wrote “what the fuck?” because who talks like that??? There’s literally a scene where Emira says “you’re lit” and Kelley is like “you too miss” like um, no thanks. The writing was just so bad in some parts.
And I just couldn’t get invested in these character or this story, it just wasn’t really for me. I’ve been trying to read this for weeks, which is a long time for me to get through something this short and I just don’t care enough about it.
December 18, 2019
i hate to be the one to swoop in here and leave one star buuuuuuut
the main themes of this book are the intersection of race and class/income but the author for whatever reason seems dead set against any character in the novel acting across these lines in a way that is genuine or that doesn’t have an ulterior motive. there is no normal main character in this book.
in addition to the main character emira’s constant griping about everyone around her being more successful/wealthy than her (does the author not think watching children is a real job? seems probable)—there are two white people in this book, one more horrible than the other (the first is an inexplicable woman who changes her name from “alex” to “alix” to forge a new identity for herself and the second is a 30-something man whose creep-ass pet name for women he dates is “miss”, not real and again, inexplicable). tamra is a black friend of alix who also for whatever reason is written as having a white savior complex. the one white friend of the main characters’ friend group is roasted for having black friends and belittled by the group or the main character throughout. it is clear that it’s weird in this universe for any cross-racial relationships to exist, with the exception of the main character and the child she watches.
i don’t know if this was the intention, but this book is cynical (the reason being...?) and i despised the small and unnecessary additions the author made throughout the book referring to the white woman’s (alix’s) weight, the feeling of guilt being compared to as if she’d been caught with frosting on her face in front of the fridge, how hot she felt thin, her friends having an intervention when she admitted she had been gaining weight, etc etc
exhausting.
**full disclosure, i was provided a copy by the publisher, this is a fair and honest review lol obviously**
the main themes of this book are the intersection of race and class/income but the author for whatever reason seems dead set against any character in the novel acting across these lines in a way that is genuine or that doesn’t have an ulterior motive. there is no normal main character in this book.
in addition to the main character emira’s constant griping about everyone around her being more successful/wealthy than her (does the author not think watching children is a real job? seems probable)—there are two white people in this book, one more horrible than the other (the first is an inexplicable woman who changes her name from “alex” to “alix” to forge a new identity for herself and the second is a 30-something man whose creep-ass pet name for women he dates is “miss”, not real and again, inexplicable). tamra is a black friend of alix who also for whatever reason is written as having a white savior complex. the one white friend of the main characters’ friend group is roasted for having black friends and belittled by the group or the main character throughout. it is clear that it’s weird in this universe for any cross-racial relationships to exist, with the exception of the main character and the child she watches.
i don’t know if this was the intention, but this book is cynical (the reason being...?) and i despised the small and unnecessary additions the author made throughout the book referring to the white woman’s (alix’s) weight, the feeling of guilt being compared to as if she’d been caught with frosting on her face in front of the fridge, how hot she felt thin, her friends having an intervention when she admitted she had been gaining weight, etc etc
exhausting.
**full disclosure, i was provided a copy by the publisher, this is a fair and honest review lol obviously**
December 9, 2020
oooh, goodreads choice awards finalist for best fiction AND best debut novel 2020! what will happen?
THIS HAPPENED:
CONGRATULATIONS, WINNER! goodreads choice awards best DEBUT NOVEL 2020!
someday i will even get around to reviewing it. i hope.
this book is smart and excellent in like twelve different ways. believe all hype.
review to come.
THIS HAPPENED:
CONGRATULATIONS, WINNER! goodreads choice awards best DEBUT NOVEL 2020!
someday i will even get around to reviewing it. i hope.
this book is smart and excellent in like twelve different ways. believe all hype.
review to come.
January 12, 2020
Such a fab book! Kiley Reid’s debut was extremely readable, tremendously thought-provoking, and very hard to review. On the surface this was an engaging story about Emira, A 25-year-old African-American woman finding herself and her voice. But there really was so much more to it, it really was a story about privilege, race, and economic status. The story starts with Emira being accused of kidnapping when she is at the grocery store late at night with A little white girl. The truth of it was she was babysitting and doing a favor for the couple she works for and taking the little girl out of the house, because things were happening at home. I grew up in a biracial family so I do know what it’s like for people to assume things. Many times people did not believe my African-American brother was my brother, but if he were ever out with my white children and somebody accused him of kidnapping them, I would probably lose it. There was much more to the story there was Alix Emira’s boss. Alix lived a privileged life and had an obsessive need to bond with Emira. I have to say I found this really strange, disconcerting, and borderline stalkerish. Then there was love interest Kelly who ironically also had a past Thai to Alix. Still really don’t know what to think of him? There were many other characters in the story most of them having very strong opinions as to what Emira should do with her life. Then there was three-year-old Brier the little girl she babysat. Brier was so adorable, precocious, and loving. I love the relationship between Brier and Emira they were just so completely loving and accepting of one another. I have to say I found Emira a much more sympathetic character. The poor girl had so many people trying to tell her what she should be doing, even though she was perfectly fine with being a nanny. I just loved this book so much it was so brilliant in its subtlety so beautiful in its nuance.
🎧🎧🎧 The audiobook was narrated by Nicole Lewis. She really brought the perfect voice to this exceptional story.
This book in emojis. 🧸 🖌 🖍 🥂
*** Big thanks to Putnam Books, Libro fm, and Penguin Audio for my gifted copy of this book 👯♀️
🎧🎧🎧 The audiobook was narrated by Nicole Lewis. She really brought the perfect voice to this exceptional story.
This book in emojis. 🧸 🖌 🖍 🥂
*** Big thanks to Putnam Books, Libro fm, and Penguin Audio for my gifted copy of this book 👯♀️
January 5, 2023
Ten tytuł bardzo dobrze oddaje esencję pierwszoplanowej historii.
April 17, 2020
My reviews can also be seen at: https://deesradreadsandreviews.wordpr...
4.5 Stars!!!
An unforgettable story!!
Twenty-five-year old, Emira Tucker is out with friends when her boss calls to ask if she would be able to babysit for a couple of hours. Emira regularly babysits for Mrs. Chamberlain (Alix) but it is already after ten on a Saturday night. However, there has been an incident at the Chamberlain home and Mrs. Chamberlain thinks it would be better if two-year-old, Briar is out of the house while they deal with everything. Emira explains that she isn’t exactly dressed for babysitting and that she’s had a couple of drinks. Mrs. Chamberlain says that's fine and offers to pay Emira double her regular rate. Emira needs the money so she agrees. Her friend Zara decides to go with her so the three of them head to Market Depot so Briar can look at the nuts and smell the tea (yes that’s right).
They are all having a great time in the store. “Emira was being paid thirty-two dollars an hour to dance in a grocery store with her best friend and favorite little human.” Unfortunately, their good time comes to a screeching halt when Emira is approached by a security guard who asks if Briar is Emira’s child. Suffice to say the conversation doesn’t go well and the situation starts to escalate. “Mr. Chamberlain? Can you please come to Market Depot? Because they think I stole Briar” Another shopper manages to get the episode on video.
Life changes after the night at Market Depot. Emira isn’t sure what to do or how to feel. Alix is also upset by what happened and wishes she could make things right. Emira and Alix have more in common than they realize and after a very memorable Thanksgiving dinner, things come to a head.
Then a video of the incident at Market depot goes viral.
This was an addictive and entertaining read!
I listened to part of this book and read the other part. Both were great but I LOVED the narration of the audiobook.
I enjoyed the relationships in this novel, especially the relationship between Emira and Briar. I also liked how Emira and Alix both had such a great group of friends.
Briar really is the coolest kid ever. “Briar was constantly asking, singing, rambling, humming, explaining that she liked hot dogs, that she once saw a turtle, that she wanted a high five, that she was not tired at all.” I could hear that raspy chatty voice even when I wasn’t listening to the audiobook. Briar is a star but the other children in the book are also entertaining. “ Mommy, a penis is private. Mommy, you can’t play tag with a penis. Mommy, I have a penis and our dog has a penis and you lost yours so you need to be more careful.” Parts like that had me laughing out loud.
I loved the flow of the story and really liked hearing from both main characters. I thought I had things all figured out, but as the story went on there were some shocking revelations.
I think this would be a great choice for group reads. I’m pretty sure we’ll be seeing this on the big and/or small screen at some point.
A terrific coming of age story that gives an unflinching look at race and privilege.
November 12, 2021
"Such a Fun Age" by Kiley Reid is a bit of a miss for me!
Alix Chamberlain is a 33 years old white woman who has life all figured out! She's a Blogger with scads of followers, has a handsome news-reporter husband, two beautiful young daughters, a lovely home and a new book deal. Yep! She's got it goin' on! She's the 'Boss'.
Emira Tucker is a 25 years old African-American woman who doesn't know what she wants to be when she grows up. Maybe it's more about finding the right job and making the right choices. She's not sure about that either, so maybe not. She's the 'Babysitter'.
Late one night while out dancing and drinking with friends, the 'Babysitter' is asked by the 'Boss' to take her oldest daughter, Briar away from the house after an unexpected disturbance. The 'Boss' suggests the local high-end market down the street as a safe place for them to wait until the 'Boss' calls them back. Seriously?
So picture this: An African American woman holding a white child in a high-end market late at night, not dressed for work and smelling of alcohol. Can you guess what happens next? The 'Babysitter' is approached by store security, questioned, accused of kidnapping and the police are called.
The Babysitter is humiliated, angry and uncooperative. Other customers stop to watch. One customer pulls out a cell phone and begins to record the incident. Mr. Chamberlain is called and defuses the situation immediately.
Enter Kelley Copeland, the customer who recorded the incident. He offers the recorded video to Emira but she's not interested and prefers to forget the incident ever happened. So is that really it? What if the incident isn't forgotten and the recording surfaces later? What happens then?
There is no shortage of 'hot button' topics in this book: Relationship challenges, styles of parenting, varied economic levels, blatant racial profiling and innuendo of 'living on the fringes' of mental illness. Alix is a little over-the-top and I have to admit, 'cray-cray' appropriately comes to mind here! No joke!
I had trouble liking any of the main characters with the exception of sweet little Briar. She was so special and unique! I felt sorry for Emira and wanted to help her but she can't make a decision about her future. She continues to spin in place while her life revolved haphazardly around her. Alix and Kelley are horrible and all the friends of everyone are annoying. Not connecting with the characters is always a big deal breaker for me!
Even with the important topics, this story feels too full. Too much going on. Too many friends with too much dialog. I wanted a break from all the busyness and chatter. It was just too much for my ears to handle. I was on overload!
Perhaps this is an example of when reading rather than listening would have been the better choice for me. With that said, Nicole Lewis did a fine job with her narration of this story! Really superb!
Now, I'm off to thoroughly enjoy my next amazing read...
Alix Chamberlain is a 33 years old white woman who has life all figured out! She's a Blogger with scads of followers, has a handsome news-reporter husband, two beautiful young daughters, a lovely home and a new book deal. Yep! She's got it goin' on! She's the 'Boss'.
Emira Tucker is a 25 years old African-American woman who doesn't know what she wants to be when she grows up. Maybe it's more about finding the right job and making the right choices. She's not sure about that either, so maybe not. She's the 'Babysitter'.
Late one night while out dancing and drinking with friends, the 'Babysitter' is asked by the 'Boss' to take her oldest daughter, Briar away from the house after an unexpected disturbance. The 'Boss' suggests the local high-end market down the street as a safe place for them to wait until the 'Boss' calls them back. Seriously?
So picture this: An African American woman holding a white child in a high-end market late at night, not dressed for work and smelling of alcohol. Can you guess what happens next? The 'Babysitter' is approached by store security, questioned, accused of kidnapping and the police are called.
The Babysitter is humiliated, angry and uncooperative. Other customers stop to watch. One customer pulls out a cell phone and begins to record the incident. Mr. Chamberlain is called and defuses the situation immediately.
Enter Kelley Copeland, the customer who recorded the incident. He offers the recorded video to Emira but she's not interested and prefers to forget the incident ever happened. So is that really it? What if the incident isn't forgotten and the recording surfaces later? What happens then?
There is no shortage of 'hot button' topics in this book: Relationship challenges, styles of parenting, varied economic levels, blatant racial profiling and innuendo of 'living on the fringes' of mental illness. Alix is a little over-the-top and I have to admit, 'cray-cray' appropriately comes to mind here! No joke!
I had trouble liking any of the main characters with the exception of sweet little Briar. She was so special and unique! I felt sorry for Emira and wanted to help her but she can't make a decision about her future. She continues to spin in place while her life revolved haphazardly around her. Alix and Kelley are horrible and all the friends of everyone are annoying. Not connecting with the characters is always a big deal breaker for me!
Even with the important topics, this story feels too full. Too much going on. Too many friends with too much dialog. I wanted a break from all the busyness and chatter. It was just too much for my ears to handle. I was on overload!
Perhaps this is an example of when reading rather than listening would have been the better choice for me. With that said, Nicole Lewis did a fine job with her narration of this story! Really superb!
Now, I'm off to thoroughly enjoy my next amazing read...
June 5, 2020
4 Stars
It is with such a heavy heart that I write this review for “Such a Fun Age” a book I read a week and a half ago, when in the few short days since having read this, so much has transpired in our nation.
This is a novel about class, privilege, society and racism from POV’s of two very different women: a successful, upper middle class caucasian woman and a young, struggling african american woman, who come from very different worlds. Alix is a wife, a mother, a blogger and an instagram influencer, living in Philadelphia with her family. She is in desperate need of a babysitter for her two children when she finds the perfect woman for the job. Enter Emira. A young african american woman who works part time as a transcriptionist and who needs another part-time job to pay the rent.
Emira and Alix’s daughter Briar get along famously and all is well until one evening when Alix calls Emira in a panic asking for help. Knowing that she will get paid handsomely, Emira comes to Alix’s rescue taking Briar out of the house for a little while when an incident occurs. An incident wherein Emira is discriminated against because of her race.
This my friends is only the beginning of the story.
Someone witnesses this incident and later becomes integral to Emira’s life. In an unbelievable coincidence, this has a rippling effect on the entire story.
Stunned by what she has discovered, Alix Chamberlin wants to do the best she can for Emira and yet she has to protect what is hers. Emira simply wants to be happy, to believe in those around her and to better herself. If only it was that easy.
“Such a Fun Age” is character driven, literary fiction which I truly enjoyed reading, even though it deals with difficult topics. While I really liked the characters of Briar and Emira, the others left me wanting, just a tad. I didn’t feel enough emotion from them and that is the reason why this novel didn’t get a slightly higher rating from me. That aside, I am astounded that this is KIley Reid’s first novel and I can’t wait to see what she comes out with next.
This novel deals with several very important issues, all of which are very prevalent right now. All I can say, is that we all impact each other (as was shown in this novel) and it is important that we take a look at ourselves, and listen to those whose backgrounds are different from our own and that we think before we act and before we speak. It is also important that we show compassion for each other and for ourselves. From my heart to yours, namaste my friends.
Thank you to my local bookstore at which I purchased a signed copy of this novel.
Published on Goodreads on 6.1.20.
It is with such a heavy heart that I write this review for “Such a Fun Age” a book I read a week and a half ago, when in the few short days since having read this, so much has transpired in our nation.
This is a novel about class, privilege, society and racism from POV’s of two very different women: a successful, upper middle class caucasian woman and a young, struggling african american woman, who come from very different worlds. Alix is a wife, a mother, a blogger and an instagram influencer, living in Philadelphia with her family. She is in desperate need of a babysitter for her two children when she finds the perfect woman for the job. Enter Emira. A young african american woman who works part time as a transcriptionist and who needs another part-time job to pay the rent.
Emira and Alix’s daughter Briar get along famously and all is well until one evening when Alix calls Emira in a panic asking for help. Knowing that she will get paid handsomely, Emira comes to Alix’s rescue taking Briar out of the house for a little while when an incident occurs. An incident wherein Emira is discriminated against because of her race.
This my friends is only the beginning of the story.
Someone witnesses this incident and later becomes integral to Emira’s life. In an unbelievable coincidence, this has a rippling effect on the entire story.
Stunned by what she has discovered, Alix Chamberlin wants to do the best she can for Emira and yet she has to protect what is hers. Emira simply wants to be happy, to believe in those around her and to better herself. If only it was that easy.
“Such a Fun Age” is character driven, literary fiction which I truly enjoyed reading, even though it deals with difficult topics. While I really liked the characters of Briar and Emira, the others left me wanting, just a tad. I didn’t feel enough emotion from them and that is the reason why this novel didn’t get a slightly higher rating from me. That aside, I am astounded that this is KIley Reid’s first novel and I can’t wait to see what she comes out with next.
This novel deals with several very important issues, all of which are very prevalent right now. All I can say, is that we all impact each other (as was shown in this novel) and it is important that we take a look at ourselves, and listen to those whose backgrounds are different from our own and that we think before we act and before we speak. It is also important that we show compassion for each other and for ourselves. From my heart to yours, namaste my friends.
Thank you to my local bookstore at which I purchased a signed copy of this novel.
Published on Goodreads on 6.1.20.
February 26, 2022
I am deeply disappointed...where should I start?
The stereotypical tropes, the ridiculous cliches, and let’s not forget how poorly written this novel was. How did this even get published? Where is the figurative language, the literary devices, a fully fleshed out story with complex characters? Nonexistent. All of it, completely nonexistent. The author is a Black woman but perhaps she was not raised or has come into contact with REAL LIVE BLACK FOLK??? The vocabulary coming out of her specifically black, educated characters’ mouths made me blench with disgust. Emira (the protagonist?) was an English major at Temple and yet every single sentence she uttered was anchored with “like” and “that’s lit”? LIKE, what???
Then there is white savior Alix (pronounced uh-leeks) who is so incredibly one dimensional with no redeeming qualities (the white voyeurism also didn’t seem to match the persona the author crafted at the beginning of the novel) and Kelley the white boy who fetishizes black women, and Uh-leeks’ husband who has a streak of racist inclinations, and Tamra the Sambo, and, and, and...is your head spinning yet?
I have to stop. I’m getting so worked up, because I spent money on this book. I cannot believe I spent money on this book. UGHHHHHH!
The stereotypical tropes, the ridiculous cliches, and let’s not forget how poorly written this novel was. How did this even get published? Where is the figurative language, the literary devices, a fully fleshed out story with complex characters? Nonexistent. All of it, completely nonexistent. The author is a Black woman but perhaps she was not raised or has come into contact with REAL LIVE BLACK FOLK??? The vocabulary coming out of her specifically black, educated characters’ mouths made me blench with disgust. Emira (the protagonist?) was an English major at Temple and yet every single sentence she uttered was anchored with “like” and “that’s lit”? LIKE, what???
Then there is white savior Alix (pronounced uh-leeks) who is so incredibly one dimensional with no redeeming qualities (the white voyeurism also didn’t seem to match the persona the author crafted at the beginning of the novel) and Kelley the white boy who fetishizes black women, and Uh-leeks’ husband who has a streak of racist inclinations, and Tamra the Sambo, and, and, and...is your head spinning yet?
I have to stop. I’m getting so worked up, because I spent money on this book. I cannot believe I spent money on this book. UGHHHHHH!
June 2, 2020
Wow. Kiley Reid can write. No doubt about it.
I've been waffling back and forth about whether to go with a four- or five-star rating. I've settled on four stars.
I think. At least for now.
Such a Fun Age is an intelligent, deftly written debut . . . with a bite. Don't let the pretty cover fool you. The story behind the bright, cheery pink and blue hues is intense.
Reid tackles the tough issues of class, privilege, racism, and "white saviors" in this novel -- and does not shy away from any of it. The subject matter of the story makes for a difficult read at times. But Reid also infuses the narrative with warmth, love, and humor. Often, I found myself laughing, even while feeling anger and frustration toward the characters.
The main characters in this novel are complex and flawed, to say the least --
We have Alix Chamberlain, well-known blogger and mother of two young girls, who develops a weird obsession with her daughters' babysitter, Emira. (You should know that I also found Alix to be a very mentally unstable, narcissistic sociopath with MAJOR issues. She. Is. Messed. Up.)
We have Emira Tucker, a 25 year-old, African-American woman, who is babysitting and living aimlessly without much of an inkling as to what to do with her life.
And then there is Kelley Copeland, a successful, 32 year-old, white man, who has problems of his own -- namely, racial fetishism.
Reid expertly crafts all three individuals and brings a rich humanity to their flaws. She takes great care to ensure that her characters are not stereotypical and allows readers to feel a small bit of empathy for them, even when their behavior is not always morally sound.
I was seriously hooked from the very first page. I think most readers will be, too.
Such a Fun Age -- Such a great story. Such a great writer.
Such an impressive debut.
I've been waffling back and forth about whether to go with a four- or five-star rating. I've settled on four stars.
I think. At least for now.
Such a Fun Age is an intelligent, deftly written debut . . . with a bite. Don't let the pretty cover fool you. The story behind the bright, cheery pink and blue hues is intense.
Reid tackles the tough issues of class, privilege, racism, and "white saviors" in this novel -- and does not shy away from any of it. The subject matter of the story makes for a difficult read at times. But Reid also infuses the narrative with warmth, love, and humor. Often, I found myself laughing, even while feeling anger and frustration toward the characters.
The main characters in this novel are complex and flawed, to say the least --
We have Alix Chamberlain, well-known blogger and mother of two young girls, who develops a weird obsession with her daughters' babysitter, Emira. (You should know that I also found Alix to be a very mentally unstable, narcissistic sociopath with MAJOR issues. She. Is. Messed. Up.)
We have Emira Tucker, a 25 year-old, African-American woman, who is babysitting and living aimlessly without much of an inkling as to what to do with her life.
And then there is Kelley Copeland, a successful, 32 year-old, white man, who has problems of his own -- namely, racial fetishism.
Reid expertly crafts all three individuals and brings a rich humanity to their flaws. She takes great care to ensure that her characters are not stereotypical and allows readers to feel a small bit of empathy for them, even when their behavior is not always morally sound.
I was seriously hooked from the very first page. I think most readers will be, too.
Such a Fun Age -- Such a great story. Such a great writer.
Such an impressive debut.
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