Tiny In Toronto

Hello everyone! I’m back with another book review. I don’t even know if I can fully consider this a review (am I really qualified?). But these are just a few of my thoughts on the book and whether or not I recommend it. Okay, so maybe it is a review lol.

This book was chosen for one of my book clubs and I’ll let you know right off the bat that we all loved it. Everyone gave it a 5/5 star rating. I guess this might be all you need to know, but I’ll tell you a bit more anyway!

Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid was such a breath of fresh air. It was so easy to read, and also quite fun! Kiley Reid is a beautiful writer and I loved that she created relatable characters that had very realistic conversations. She perfectly demonstrated the differences there are when it comes to privilege, class and race. I also love how she didn’t create any bias. She let you form your own opinions about each character. Questions like: Is Kelley racist? Is Alix racist? Should Emira really be working for Alix? Is Kelley dating Emira for the right reasons? When trying to figure it out yourself, Kiley Reid made sure that you understood everyone’s intentions and gave you a very considerate look at everyone’s point of view. And despite the weight of these topics, she managed to keep it light and easy to follow.

Guys, this book was great. If you’re still unfamiliar with racism and white guilt (and I really hope you aren’t), this is a book you want to read. If you’re familiar, I think it’s a refreshing approach and something you’ll enjoy reading. It’s definitely one you’ll want to recommend to your friends!

It’s written in two perspectives: Alix (the rich white woman) and Emira (Alix’s black babysitter). One night, Emira is called while she is out at a party with her friends. Alix, her boss, needs Emira to take her eldest daughter out of the house for a little bit. Why? Her husband had said something offensive and racist on television (he’s a news anchor) and a rock was just thrown through their front window. They didn’t want Briar (their toddler and eldest child) to be there when the cops arrived so Emira obliged, and they sent an Uber to come get her (Emira isn’t told why their front window is broken). When Emira gets there, they send her and Briar to the expensive grocery store a couple blocks away. It’s frequented mostly by white people so when Emira and Briar get there, Emira runs into some trouble with the grocery store’s security guard. He thinks Emira (because she’s a black woman with a white child) kidnapped Briar and it becomes a huge and unnecessary scene. Kelley, a total stranger at the time, records the whole scenario with his cellphone and then tells Emira she should post it online. This would go viral and expose the racism in the community. Emira says no and tells him to delete it, and that’s all I’m going to tell you. That’s also practically how this novel starts and everything that occurs afterwards is somehow tied to it.

I always say this (because I really think I’m awful at retelling or providing decent summaries), but I’m sorry if this doesn’t entice you at all to read this book. I’m trying not to give too much away. However, everyone from book club will definitely back me up and encourage you to give “Such a Fun Age” a shot. It honestly was so well done. I loved it. It’s such a perfect example of how things are and have been, and what needs to change.

If you pick up this book, you have to let me know what you think of it! It’s a great novel. Again, 5/5 star rating! I promise you won’t regret this.

Happy reading!

Also, I always love book recommendations so feel free to leave me some in the comments!

Until next time,

– Tiny ❤