Kiley Reid's Debut Novel, Such a Fun Age, Provides a Fresh and Nuanced Take on a Familiar Story.

Smanga did not lie when he said that this book is full of crazy white people. I found most of the characters' actions and decisions infuriating so much of the time I was behooved to throw the book across the room in annoyance. However, it really is a fascinating read.

SUCH A FUN AGE is a story that investigates and critiques race and/or racial relations where class, privilege and identity are concerned; but it was Kiley Reid's portrayal of the fetishization of Black people by not just one character but two that had me screaming how it felt inspired and brilliant, and frankly eye-opening. A conversation on Twirra reminded me of this: I couldn't put it into words before it because it was completely implicit. It is there, if not masked by the covert racism of white guilt, perfomative activism and the hoops white folks jump to prove one is more 'woke' than the other.

The book follows Emira Tucker, a 25 year-old babysitter, who becomes a victim of racism when a security guard accuses her of kidnapping the child she's babysitting. This event introduces us to the parents of this child, Alix and Peter Chamberlain - an Instagram influencer who made a name for herself for writing flowerful letters soliciting free stuff from companies, and a news anchor.

It also introduces us to Kelley Copeland, a bystander who witnesses this and tapes it; who unbeknownst to us and Emira, has charged history with Alix Chamberlain.

This one incident that Emira would rather forget becomes the exodus to what I believe is a study on the characters and the motives that drive them to do what they do, to be the people they are and exposes them as they truly are: because while Alix feels overprotective of Emira and accuses Kelley of using Black people to advance himself and feed his ego, she fails (or does she?) to acknowledge that she is doing the same thing.

I had the pleasure of reading this book for book club last month, an experience I hold very close to my heart because it allowed for great conversations on this books nuanced themes and how as readers we tend to derive different lessons from the reading. One thing was unanimous during the discussion, and that is how the author weaves the character of Emira in a way that's relatable to most young people of this "fun age"; my takeaway from the title. Another thing worth nothing: the title can be interpreted in many different ways. Emira is a 20-something year-old with ambitious friends who are thriving in their respective careers, while she is content with being a babysitter and a typist. The reality of feeling like time is running out while others your age are doing amazing things is an anxiety that most people of this age feel, myself included; like we are unaccomplished. Emira becomes an outfit we wear to fit into this story: shared experiences.

That's the thing about the power of language and storytelling. It holds up a mirror to our lives and lived experiences, and provides insight and a nuance to them that that we weren't privy to.

There's something fresh and engaging about the way Kiley Reid writes; her work confident and straightforward you get to experience her characters as flawed and human as they are, it's almost like you exist with them in their world with an added twist of seeing them outside of how they view themselves.

It is frustrating. It is anxiety-enducing. It is prose at its finest told by an intelligent author who knows and understands her characters, her readers and their convictions enough to dish out a debut that's both original and somewhat familiar at the same time.