The Book:
Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid
Published: December 2019 by G.P. Putnam’s Sons
Torrie’s Rating:
The Plot (Goodreads):
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.
Torrie’s Review:
I swapped for this book through www.paperbackswap.com, and am so glad I did! I’m usually a mystery reader, but I do enjoy the occasional family drama, and this certainly aligns with my favorite novels from that genre. I’d compare the themes to some of Jodi Picoult’s novels, and she’s a favorite of mine.
Enjoyed how the author balanced the serious racial themes with the themes of motherhood and the pressure that is placed on women, particularly mothers. I found the commentary on wealth to be nuanced and interesting. This book did a fantastic job of touching on a number of different serious issues without making the book feel like it was lecturing at me. It is clear what messages the author was trying to send, but at the same time, I felt like there was space for me to make up my own mind.
Throughout the book, I enjoyed that the characters were complicated, and the situations weren’t black and white. I was a bit disappointed when the final two chapters spent too much time wrapping everything up with a nice bow. I wouldn’t have minded if there was some ambiguity to the ending. The one detail/wrap-up I did want (about Briar’s future) I feel like I didn’t get.
Ultimately, I highly recommend this book. It is a fantastic and it’s interesting read, full stop. Additionally, if you’re someone who is trying to read more Black authors, and/or someone that wants to explore or learn about issues of race, starting with fiction is a good way to ease yourself into it. As someone who has read a bit of non-fiction about racism (and enjoyed it), I felt that starting with fiction made the blunt non-fiction more approachable and easier to put into various contexts. While I started with other fiction that had racism commentary, this is another I’d certainly recommend for that purpose. At the end of the day, simply read this book because it is great.
Meet Guest Reviewer by Torrie Lewine
