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marisa_n's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Racial slurs, Police brutality, Cultural appropriation, and Classism
Minor: Stalking
nenya's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This book was simply amazing. As a white person, I think it’s so important to read it and to reflect upon yourself. It’s got several very important lessons about casual as well as explicit racism and what it means to actually be anti-racist. One of the biggest topics is the fetishization of POC which is an equally disturbing and important element of the plot. What I also love is the relationship between the protagonist Emira and the child she‘s babysitting, Briar. It’s so heartwarming and yet cruel because their relationship is based on a transaction making it difficult to define the difference of professionalism/a job well done and family love. Over all, this book will leave you with so many wow moments and opportunities to rethink your views on race. It’s an easy five stars.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Toxic relationship, Police brutality, and Classism
Moderate: Cursing, Sexual content, Vomit, and Gaslighting
basicbookstagrammer's review
emotional
funny
informative
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Police brutality, Stalking, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, and Classism
fabilous_books's review
informative
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
I am not African American so I got no idea if this is the best representation or that it accurately depicts what bipoc face. But it sure was entertaining.
We meet Emira who was accused of kidnapping the kid she's babysitting in a high-class supermarket, she meets a white guy there who dates her later on in the book. Then suddenly her employer is interested in knowing her. The plot kept me engaged from start to finish. It got me wanting to finish it to find out what happens next which rarely happens with me, I usually want to finish a book because I don't want to keep spending time on it lol. But the things that happens in the book after the incident were pretty interesting but I think it missed the mark a bit. It didn't really satisfy me and I think it could've been more details in the flashbacks. It briefly discussed the topic of fetishism and I think we should've gotten a bit more.
Emira isn't that interesting of a character and she didn't really do much or had a big personality. She almost felt like a plot device except she is the main character in this book.
Alix on the other hand, aka the employer, was very interesting. It could've delved deeper into her character and why she did what she does concerning the whole racism thing. Her obsession with Emira was so uncomfortable and insane and it was so entertaining.
Kelley, the white boyfriend, was a bit of a throwaway character because he does some questionable things but he isn't a bad person. I wish we had more of his character background and all that.
The writing was easy to read and the pacing was pretty good :)
We meet Emira who was accused of kidnapping the kid she's babysitting in a high-class supermarket, she meets a white guy there who dates her later on in the book. Then suddenly her employer is interested in knowing her. The plot kept me engaged from start to finish. It got me wanting to finish it to find out what happens next which rarely happens with me, I usually want to finish a book because I don't want to keep spending time on it lol. But the things that happens in the book after the incident were pretty interesting but I think it missed the mark a bit. It didn't really satisfy me and I think it could've been more details in the flashbacks. It briefly discussed the topic of fetishism and I think we should've gotten a bit more.
Emira isn't that interesting of a character and she didn't really do much or had a big personality. She almost felt like a plot device except she is the main character in this book.
Alix on the other hand, aka the employer, was very interesting. It could've delved deeper into her character and why she did what she does concerning the whole racism thing. Her obsession with Emira was so uncomfortable and insane and it was so entertaining.
Kelley, the white boyfriend, was a bit of a throwaway character because he does some questionable things but he isn't a bad person. I wish we had more of his character background and all that.
The writing was easy to read and the pacing was pretty good :)
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racial slurs, Racism, and Classism
floraforlora's review against another edition
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Hate crime, Racial slurs, Racism, and Classism
jojo_'s review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Cultural appropriation, and Classism
Moderate: Bullying, Racial slurs, Toxic relationship, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Animal death, Vomit, Police brutality, Stalking, and Death of parent
greatexpectations77's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
This is absolutely as good as everyone said it was! Can't wait for more from Ms. Reid. She has such a way with natural dialogue that I only dream of even approaching one day. I also really felt like the interactions between the friends felt real and authentic - the phone bowl, the secret job negotiations in a bathroom. To me, those scenes feel so true to your 20s.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Racism, Alcohol, and Classism
Moderate: Animal death, Emotional abuse, Racial slurs, Sexual content, Police brutality, and Pregnancy
Minor: Adult/minor relationship
lindseyhall44's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
This book was honestly not what I was expecting at all…but I still loved it.
Such a Fun Age follows Emira, a black women, as she is accused of kidnapping the white child she is babysitting. Alix is the mother of the child, and vows to make things right with Emira. What follows is a story of class, race, obsession, and family.
This book handled important conversations very well, which led me to reflect on my own life. Fetishization is a topic often overlooked in literature, but Riley explored its effect on relationships in such an interesting way. Overall, my favorite aspect of the novel is the two contrasting narrators which offer distinctly different experiences surrounding American life.
After checking trigger warnings and age ratings, I would definitely recommend picking up Such a Fun Age as your next read!
Such a Fun Age follows Emira, a black women, as she is accused of kidnapping the white child she is babysitting. Alix is the mother of the child, and vows to make things right with Emira. What follows is a story of class, race, obsession, and family.
This book handled important conversations very well, which led me to reflect on my own life. Fetishization is a topic often overlooked in literature, but Riley explored its effect on relationships in such an interesting way. Overall, my favorite aspect of the novel is the two contrasting narrators which offer distinctly different experiences surrounding American life.
After checking trigger warnings and age ratings, I would definitely recommend picking up Such a Fun Age as your next read!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Toxic relationship, Cultural appropriation, and Classism
Moderate: Body shaming, Fatphobia, Slavery, and Pregnancy
maartabarrales's review against another edition
challenging
dark
funny
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism and Classism
Moderate: Racial slurs and Sexual content
sarahbryant717's review
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Loved, loved, loved this book!
Emira, a young black woman, is the babysitter for the Chamberlin family. One evening, while out at a party, Alix Chamberlin calls Emira asking her to come over and take her daughter Briar out of the house for a bit while she and her husband deal with an act of vandalism. While hanging with Briar at a nearby grocery store, Emira is accused of kidnapping the young girl by a shopper and the store security guard. The book goes on to tell the story of the aftermath from Alix and Emira’s perspectives with race being a predominate issue.
I loved Emira and particularly her relationship with three year old Briar. The author wasn’t afraid to tackle race relationships head on and this book really made me examine my own privilege and perspective on race.
Emira, a young black woman, is the babysitter for the Chamberlin family. One evening, while out at a party, Alix Chamberlin calls Emira asking her to come over and take her daughter Briar out of the house for a bit while she and her husband deal with an act of vandalism. While hanging with Briar at a nearby grocery store, Emira is accused of kidnapping the young girl by a shopper and the store security guard. The book goes on to tell the story of the aftermath from Alix and Emira’s perspectives with race being a predominate issue.
I loved Emira and particularly her relationship with three year old Briar. The author wasn’t afraid to tackle race relationships head on and this book really made me examine my own privilege and perspective on race.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism
Moderate: Classism