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elwood's review against another edition
4.0
White saviour complex come through!
Such a fun age is such an easy read, but don’t be deceived. Although the reading was easy and “light”, it packs a rather important punch.
The story focuses on a rather small and seemingly insignificant family and their babysitter, but is an important commentary and depiction of race and class in the U.S. (and other western countries).
This wasn’t an instant favourite, but I will remember it’s depth and importance for a long time. All my fellow white folks should read this and learn from this. We’re not saviours, we’re allies. Don’t forget that.
Such a fun age is such an easy read, but don’t be deceived. Although the reading was easy and “light”, it packs a rather important punch.
The story focuses on a rather small and seemingly insignificant family and their babysitter, but is an important commentary and depiction of race and class in the U.S. (and other western countries).
This wasn’t an instant favourite, but I will remember it’s depth and importance for a long time. All my fellow white folks should read this and learn from this. We’re not saviours, we’re allies. Don’t forget that.
amy_hensler's review against another edition
emotional
funny
tense
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
4.0
aischultz03's review against another edition
Jumped into more fantasy series - will come back to this!
deartaylorwoods's review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
tense
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? No
5.0
jenhurst's review against another edition
4.0
Emira is a baby-sitter and takes Alix (a white blogger's) kid to the grocery store. On this trip, Emira is accused of abducting the toddler Briar.
I liked how subtle this portray of racism was and it felt very realistic. Alix showed some white saviour complex, as did Emira's boyfriend. No one in the story was particularly likeable but yet they all felt so realistic. I could see people making some of these comments and compared to a lot of other novels (The Help) this one felt like it did what they were trying to do better. At the time I'm reading it, it felt very timely with everything going on. It also wasn't just about black and white, it was also bosses and employee relationships, friendships, two very different woman and money vs no money. There was a lot implied, but left unsaid that was interesting.
I found the dialogue to be a bit stilted and you could tell it was a debut novel. The writing was passable but I think it at times held the novel back from a bit. The storytelling was really good though and kept me entertained. Which is not always easy to do with a domestic story that does not have likeable protagonists or a ton of plot.
4/5 stars.
I think this is good for anyone who likes contemporary.
I liked how subtle this portray of racism was and it felt very realistic. Alix showed some white saviour complex, as did Emira's boyfriend. No one in the story was particularly likeable but yet they all felt so realistic. I could see people making some of these comments and compared to a lot of other novels (The Help) this one felt like it did what they were trying to do better. At the time I'm reading it, it felt very timely with everything going on. It also wasn't just about black and white, it was also bosses and employee relationships, friendships, two very different woman and money vs no money. There was a lot implied, but left unsaid that was interesting.
I found the dialogue to be a bit stilted and you could tell it was a debut novel. The writing was passable but I think it at times held the novel back from a bit. The storytelling was really good though and kept me entertained. Which is not always easy to do with a domestic story that does not have likeable protagonists or a ton of plot.
4/5 stars.
I think this is good for anyone who likes contemporary.
camilleirwin's review against another edition
4.0
I really liked this one. It was a quick read but the themes of class and race were really well displayed.
snikkidee's review against another edition
4.0
I liked Emira. I thought she was a realistic woman in her 20s, but I wanted everybody else to grow more. It was good.
fionalouise8's review against another edition
challenging
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
This book was slow to start but I got into it about 1/3 of the way through. Parts are pretty uncomfortable and I think it's an important book that shows how insidious white privilege is and how it shows up intersecting with class - paternalism, white saviourism, performative activism.
There was a lot of description and too much detail of unimportant things (too many characters for one thing, I could barely remember who was who), yet somehow lacking character development for Emira, who felt quite two dimensional.
Would recommend, but I don't think it's amazingly written.
There was a lot of description and too much detail of unimportant things (too many characters for one thing, I could barely remember who was who), yet somehow lacking character development for Emira, who felt quite two dimensional.
Would recommend, but I don't think it's amazingly written.