Review: Such A Fun Age by Kiley Reid

Synopsis:

When Emira is apprehended at a supermarket for "kidnapping" the white child she was babysitting, it sets off an explosive chain of events. Her employer Alix, a feminist blogger with the best of intentions, resolves to make things right.

But Emira herself is aimless, broke and wary of Alix's desire to help. When a surprising connection emerges between the two women, it sends them on a crash course that will upend everything they think they know - about themselves, each other and the messy dynamics of privilege.

Rating: 4.5/5

I had received a copy of this book upon requesting it for review from Jonathan Ball Publishers and I must say that I was glad I did. I knew this book would deal with discrimination but not in the way that it did. This book was completely gripping and it just dealt with the topic of racism in a way I've never necessarily seen in media.

Whichever way you thought the story was going, it went in the other direction. Kiley Reid manages to keep you reading because the characters seem so incredibly realistic, you can't help but hate some and love some (I won't say who because of spoilers (⊙ˍ⊙) ). The story takes place in Philidelphia and what I found interesting was how much mindful I became of privilege in this novel, particularly from the different lifestyles of the characters. Representation as well is a huge thing for me and I am glad that the main character was a very empowering and unique black woman who actually made me feel better about myself... I'll say why just now when I talk more about her character.

The entire book was just really interesting to me and has a certain open-mindedness to it. However, a lot of the characters just seemed stereotypical - especially the white characters - as well as some of the situations that played out. I don't know if that is entirely meaningful but it didn't seem right and it didn't sit well with me. That was why I did not give the book a 5/5 rating as it did not seem fair to people who may have an issue with stuff like that. It may have just been me who saw that and I am kind off hoping it's only me that is looking so deeply into it (´･ω･`)?

Now let's talk about the main character, Emira. I loved her. Her personality astounded me because she was a character that just minded her own business. She was normally very relaxed and not exactly the type to throw things out of proportion. I enjoyed the fact that although she was a nice person overall; if someone overstepped their boundary, she'd let them have it. She was not the type to take someone else's nonsense. Now the thing I related to the most when it came to Emira was how she represented a lot of young adults who sometimes didn't even know where they were heading in life. One minute you know where you want to be and the next you're doing something you did not think you'd do but your situation called for it at the time. I cannot be the only one who related to that (。_。) but anywho, that was my favourite thing when it came to Emira. Well one of them because she was a pretty dope character.

When she was caught up in that act of racism regarding the kid she babysat, the way she handled it is what caught me off guard because that's when I didn't know where the book would go next. But you'll see what I mean ( ▔, ▔ )ㄏ As for her friends, they were stars and I loved them so much for being the type of friends a lot of us need, the ride or die types we all want.

Emira's employer, Alix Chamberlain, was a white woman who was very stereotypically "American". A social media influencer who was so obviously a feminist and had the perfect husband, house and children. She has a life I'd say resembles the "American Dream" and she just did not... give me good vibes. She came off as someone who was constantly worried about her image and what people would think over things like the fact that she was no longer living in New York. When it came to Emira, she seemed very (and a bit weirdly) overprotective over her when she honestly had no reason to be, especially if Emira was just her children's babysitter. She tried too hard to be Emira's friend rather than her employer and crossed boundaries that were just not okay and were pretty desperate and selfish.

I find this line I find straight-up iconic. I don't know why I do but for more context, this line was used by Kelley, a guy who Emira met by chance and a character whom I also found to be a teensy bit stereotypical. I won't say anything more... actually I can't because I'd be giving up a HUGE plot twist and I've already said too much so let me just stop there hehe

¯\(°_o)/¯

I hope you guys enjoy this book and a lot of the characters as much as I did and that you give this book the attention it deserves because Kiley Reid truly showed that it may be the 21st century but racism is still a thing. I definitely recommend this book to anyone who needs a little empowerment and just a good book to enjoy.

Don't forget to sprinkle kindness wherever you go :)

-zestasià

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