At some point, I felt like Alix’s character was unhinged!😂 the way she would check Emira’s texts, the way she was a tiny bit obsessed/desperate when it came to Emira, and the way she went to Kelley’s workplace... her behavior was just all over the place
Just finished reading this too and it was a total surprise. I loved the alternating perspectives, the questions it asked and the way it made me wonder about what cringeworthy things I have been responsible for, what narratives I have told myself to feel comfortable or vindicated and who is allowed to interfere in people’s lives for “their own good”. Also loved that the idea of “serious jobs and ambition” didn’t need to resolve itself. I did it on audio and binged it in 2.5 days. Such a great read.
Exactly! Would it have been satisfying for Alix and Kelley to learn big lessons or get their just desserts or whatever? Sure. Would it have been realistic? Probably not. Everyone keeps living and likely with all of the ideas they had when they started this story.
I loved your review of this book! This is also one of my favourite reads of the last few months and it's great to see other booktube reviews of this book! I've now watched a few videos on your channel and I'm a big fan now! Thanks for your content.
Awesome review! You really drew out and wonderfully worded some of the themes I hadn't quite processed fully in my head. Will be bringing some of your thoughts to my book club tonight :)
Fantastic review! I especially loved the analysis of entitlement and treating women of color as a commodity. Everything I've heard about this book makes me excited to read it!
I must admit at 59 I don't see of the things regarding Alix that you do she was a small petty entitled woman. How can she celebrate having seven black people at her Thanksgiving, like they were some sort trophy to her goodness. Alix projected everything about herself onto Kelley imho.
I've seen this book promoted but had no idea what it was about and now I'm super intrigued! And YES I have absolutely had that experience with the description vs. book experience. Happened to me recently with Lifestyles of Gods and Monsters by Emily Roberson. It's pitched as a fun, clever take on the Minotaur myth with reality TV and modern technology, which it is, but it ended up being about so much more than that: family relationships, personal accountability for terrible things you allow to happen but don't actively participate in, privacy and fame, and a great take-down of the "not like other girls" trope...it's a book I expected to have fun with but not one I necessarily expected to stick with me and it absolutely has. ALSO added bonus of a lot of things I don't often like being executed brilliantly, like a quick-developing romance.
Yes, this book was something! Pleasantly surprised me. We had very similar thoughts about this book. Glad it met the hype and can’t wait to see what Reid does next!
I love your thoughts on this! I just finished the book and wanted to hear what others thought about this. :) I thought the book was amazing and I thought it was hilarious, especially reading Alix’s perspective and all her thoughts on Amira lol. I thought it was so possessive and definitely agree this was an everyday way of Black women being commodified!
I just finished the audiobook of Such a Fun Age. I loved the moments when Amera and Alix experience each others personal spaces and describe what they see.
(Pink is so your colour =D) I think books that I had this kind of experience with were Chemistry by Weike Wang (my favourite read of last year) and Every Heart a Doorway. The adults' role in contributing to children' trauma is one of my fav thing to see in children's books (See: all of Harry's father figures in HP) and Every Heart a Doorway seemed like an homage to that trope and it was truly better than what I expected.
Loved this! I started reading this book specifically because you gave it a 5 star review, and I couldn't wait to hear your thoughts! I gave it a 4 out of 5 because I just wasn't sure what to make of the ending -- like I understood that there was no "perfect" ending here and that made it powerful, but I also don't think I quite left feeling the way I was supposed to. I don't know, I have mixed feelings on it. And then as far as the characters, I did want a little more from Emira, but actually it was Alix that I felt by the end of the book I still didn't completely know. By the end, I felt like I had a grasp of who Emira was, but I struggled with Alix a bit. Overall awesome read though, and I agree with all the rest of your points 😊 Thanks for this!
ok before I watch: I WAS LITERALLY THINKING LAST NIGHT AS I FELL ASLEEP "I forgot tell Mari I finished this. I should tell her that I wanna hear all her thoughts & that she should make a video" so I feel kind of like I just manifested this video & I love that for me.
The power. (I literally set up my tripod on a whim after work, recorded the whole thing with no script lol and then edited it before bed. Truly, your power at work.)
I don't often rush to read new releases as soon as, but this one really called to me, and I'm glad it did. It was an incredibly interesting book, one that I thought was extremely clever because, as you said, of the layers that are wrapped in such an easily digestible text. But also one that I had such conflicting feelings about. It started off weird to me with the toddler being taken out of the house at 11pm rather than being settled back into bed🤔. But maybe that's just me? One thing no-one I've not seen anyone else mention yet, is that I had quite a strong feeling that there was also commentary of how very toxic SM can become if we let it take over our lives/dictate who we become too. In terms of the characters, I had a _visceral_ reaction to Alix/Alex and spent more time thinking about everything she did (all of which I felt was just for her own benefit) than I did about Emira and the things she was put through... and I feel a bit resentful about that! Lastly, my view of Kelley is the opposite to most others, considering his friendships begun (at least) in his teenage years and seemed unwavering over the years, but certainly, he showed _many_ signs of his white male privilege, but I think that's unavoidable tbh, even with the 'wokest' people because it's so ingrained that it's default. As for the ending, I am one of those who felt a bit let down but it, but your examination of how it fits into actual real-life outcomes gives me a slightly different perspective. TFS :)
I don't think I really questioned the toddler being ushered out of the house thing. It's not every mom whose first thought would be "get the baby out of the house," but I feel like I've come across a mom or two whose reaction would be that. In the book, Alix treats Briar as an inconvenience a lot and we see that she's an incredibly perceptive and curious child. It just felt in character for me that Alix would want to "protect" Briar in this way and wouldn't really think about the inconvenience of calling her babysitter at midnight. I hadn't thought about the commentary on social media as a whole because that element to me really fed into the characterization of Alix! It never felt like "social media is bad" but rather that Alix in general was just really self-centered and all of her actions read as self-serving. I never believed that she cared about empowering women, tbh. I never believed she cared about helping Emira. Her obsession with looking right and maintaining a certain image felt more about who Alix was as a character than what social media is as an entity, if that makes sense. I definitely felt the most of Emira, especially because she really was just worried about her job, her health insurance, her relationships, etc. Hers were the worries that were the most grounded to me. Kelley had some benefit of the doubt until the end. I mean, to that end, he also had a long history of dating WOC. But I think that's kind of what the book is getting at. There is nothing ~wrong~ with that per se, but it goes back to motivation and stereotypes and the fetishizing of WOC. I left the book thinking that without a doubt, Kelley, for any of his good intentions, was fetishizing WOC. Thank you for watching and for the thoughtful comment! I love hearing about how people engaged with this book because there really was so much to digest!
@@mynameismarines "so much to digest" really is putting it mildly! The other thing for me is that you hit the nail regarding Briar, and actually, she is the one character I had most empathy for because of her mother, and I felt so strongly about Alix that she seemed totally unhinged to me! And you are welcome 😃.
loved your review. i’m new to the book community and i keep seeing this book. so i decided to check some reviews out. headed to Target now to get it bc of you😂😂😂😘
I had never heard of this book before, but now I've got to check it out. i can think of three that I picked up because they sounded vaguely interesting and then surprised me: Strange the Dreamer, Black Rabbit Hall, amd Lazaretto.
Strange the Dreamer! What were you expecting before reading? I can't remember what I had heard about that book prior to reading. I read it because LAINI TAYLOR.
@@mynameismarines I'd knew of Laini Taylor but that was my first time reading her and I remember going in not being until sure what it was about except fantasy, I don't even know if I read the synopsis, I needed an audiobook so I picked it up and was utterly blown away.
@@TheWordN3rd I love those reading experiences so, so much. It makes me feel warm and fuzzy just to think about the unexpected surprise of a beautiful book.
@@mynameismarines All three of the book I mentioned were like that! I picked them up to have something to listen to and they rocked me. It makes me which I went into more books blind.
At some point, I felt like Alix’s character was unhinged!😂 the way she would check Emira’s texts, the way she was a tiny bit obsessed/desperate when it came to Emira, and the way she went to Kelley’s workplace... her behavior was just all over the place
Just finished reading this too and it was a total surprise. I loved the alternating perspectives, the questions it asked and the way it made me wonder about what cringeworthy things I have been responsible for, what narratives I have told myself to feel comfortable or vindicated and who is allowed to interfere in people’s lives for “their own good”. Also loved that the idea of “serious jobs and ambition” didn’t need to resolve itself. I did it on audio and binged it in 2.5 days. Such a great read.
I loved this book and the ending. Literally, it is what it is. Reality doesn't always end up with all the ends tied up in a neat bow. Great book.
Exactly! Would it have been satisfying for Alix and Kelley to learn big lessons or get their just desserts or whatever? Sure. Would it have been realistic? Probably not. Everyone keeps living and likely with all of the ideas they had when they started this story.
Just finished it tonight. I like your perspective on the ending, thanks for sharing it!
And btw, 25 is a very unsettled age, I remember feeling lost at that age myself.
I loved your review of this book! This is also one of my favourite reads of the last few months and it's great to see other booktube reviews of this book! I've now watched a few videos on your channel and I'm a big fan now! Thanks for your content.
Awesome review! You really drew out and wonderfully worded some of the themes I hadn't quite processed fully in my head. Will be bringing some of your thoughts to my book club tonight :)
Fantastic review! I especially loved the analysis of entitlement and treating women of color as a commodity. Everything I've heard about this book makes me excited to read it!
I could listen to your well rounded observations and opinions in your soothing voice for hours ❤️
I must admit at 59 I don't see of the things regarding Alix that you do she was a small petty entitled woman. How can she celebrate having seven black people at her Thanksgiving, like they were some sort trophy to her goodness. Alix projected everything about herself onto Kelley imho.
Thank you so much for this wonderful review. I was undecided on this one but now I am definitely going to pick it up!
I've seen this book promoted but had no idea what it was about and now I'm super intrigued!
And YES I have absolutely had that experience with the description vs. book experience. Happened to me recently with Lifestyles of Gods and Monsters by Emily Roberson. It's pitched as a fun, clever take on the Minotaur myth with reality TV and modern technology, which it is, but it ended up being about so much more than that: family relationships, personal accountability for terrible things you allow to happen but don't actively participate in, privacy and fame, and a great take-down of the "not like other girls" trope...it's a book I expected to have fun with but not one I necessarily expected to stick with me and it absolutely has. ALSO added bonus of a lot of things I don't often like being executed brilliantly, like a quick-developing romance.
I also loved the ending! 5 stars for me! It's real life, life goes on
Yes, this book was something! Pleasantly surprised me. We had very similar thoughts about this book. Glad it met the hype and can’t wait to see what Reid does next!
I love your thoughts on this! I just finished the book and wanted to hear what others thought about this. :) I thought the book was amazing and I thought it was hilarious, especially reading Alix’s perspective and all her thoughts on Amira lol. I thought it was so possessive and definitely agree this was an everyday way of Black women being commodified!
I just finished the audiobook of Such a Fun Age. I loved the moments when Amera and Alix experience each others personal spaces and describe what they see.
Tamra’s character was... wow like she was a black women who wanted to play white savior to a younger black women(Emira)
(Pink is so your colour =D)
I think books that I had this kind of experience with were Chemistry by Weike Wang (my favourite read of last year) and Every Heart a Doorway. The adults' role in contributing to children' trauma is one of my fav thing to see in children's books (See: all of Harry's father figures in HP) and Every Heart a Doorway seemed like an homage to that trope and it was truly better than what I expected.
Loved this! I started reading this book specifically because you gave it a 5 star review, and I couldn't wait to hear your thoughts! I gave it a 4 out of 5 because I just wasn't sure what to make of the ending -- like I understood that there was no "perfect" ending here and that made it powerful, but I also don't think I quite left feeling the way I was supposed to. I don't know, I have mixed feelings on it. And then as far as the characters, I did want a little more from Emira, but actually it was Alix that I felt by the end of the book I still didn't completely know. By the end, I felt like I had a grasp of who Emira was, but I struggled with Alix a bit. Overall awesome read though, and I agree with all the rest of your points 😊 Thanks for this!
This sounds like a very interesting book. Definitely putting a hold for it @ the library asap💖
I hope you love it!
Wow, what a great review!! Adding to my TBR!!!
I loved hearing this gush! I still have yet to read the Neapolitan Novels even after all the times you mention them. Oops
This book sounds good! Thx for the rec
Yes! I'm looking for something to read now, and I just found it. Thanks :)
I hope you enjoy it!
ok before I watch: I WAS LITERALLY THINKING LAST NIGHT AS I FELL ASLEEP "I forgot tell Mari I finished this. I should tell her that I wanna hear all her thoughts & that she should make a video" so I feel kind of like I just manifested this video & I love that for me.
The power.
(I literally set up my tripod on a whim after work, recorded the whole thing with no script lol and then edited it before bed. Truly, your power at work.)
yes this is perfect I'm glad you (1) told me to read this book & (2) made this video
@@mynameismarines AMAZING.
I don't often rush to read new releases as soon as, but this one really called to me, and I'm glad it did. It was an incredibly interesting book, one that I thought was extremely clever because, as you said, of the layers that are wrapped in such an easily digestible text. But also one that I had such conflicting feelings about. It started off weird to me with the toddler being taken out of the house at 11pm rather than being settled back into bed🤔. But maybe that's just me?
One thing no-one I've not seen anyone else mention yet, is that I had quite a strong feeling that there was also commentary of how very toxic SM can become if we let it take over our lives/dictate who we become too. In terms of the characters, I had a _visceral_ reaction to Alix/Alex and spent more time thinking about everything she did (all of which I felt was just for her own benefit) than I did about Emira and the things she was put through... and I feel a bit resentful about that! Lastly, my view of Kelley is the opposite to most others, considering his friendships begun (at least) in his teenage years and seemed unwavering over the years, but certainly, he showed _many_ signs of his white male privilege, but I think that's unavoidable tbh, even with the 'wokest' people because it's so ingrained that it's default.
As for the ending, I am one of those who felt a bit let down but it, but your examination of how it fits into actual real-life outcomes gives me a slightly different perspective. TFS :)
I don't think I really questioned the toddler being ushered out of the house thing. It's not every mom whose first thought would be "get the baby out of the house," but I feel like I've come across a mom or two whose reaction would be that. In the book, Alix treats Briar as an inconvenience a lot and we see that she's an incredibly perceptive and curious child. It just felt in character for me that Alix would want to "protect" Briar in this way and wouldn't really think about the inconvenience of calling her babysitter at midnight.
I hadn't thought about the commentary on social media as a whole because that element to me really fed into the characterization of Alix! It never felt like "social media is bad" but rather that Alix in general was just really self-centered and all of her actions read as self-serving. I never believed that she cared about empowering women, tbh. I never believed she cared about helping Emira. Her obsession with looking right and maintaining a certain image felt more about who Alix was as a character than what social media is as an entity, if that makes sense.
I definitely felt the most of Emira, especially because she really was just worried about her job, her health insurance, her relationships, etc. Hers were the worries that were the most grounded to me.
Kelley had some benefit of the doubt until the end. I mean, to that end, he also had a long history of dating WOC. But I think that's kind of what the book is getting at. There is nothing ~wrong~ with that per se, but it goes back to motivation and stereotypes and the fetishizing of WOC. I left the book thinking that without a doubt, Kelley, for any of his good intentions, was fetishizing WOC.
Thank you for watching and for the thoughtful comment! I love hearing about how people engaged with this book because there really was so much to digest!
@@mynameismarines "so much to digest" really is putting it mildly! The other thing for me is that you hit the nail regarding Briar, and actually, she is the one character I had most empathy for because of her mother, and I felt so strongly about Alix that she seemed totally unhinged to me! And you are welcome 😃.
loved your review. i’m new to the book community and i keep seeing this book. so i decided to check some reviews out. headed to Target now to get it bc of you😂😂😂😘
I had never heard of this book before, but now I've got to check it out. i can think of three that I picked up because they sounded vaguely interesting and then surprised me: Strange the Dreamer, Black Rabbit Hall, amd Lazaretto.
Strange the Dreamer! What were you expecting before reading? I can't remember what I had heard about that book prior to reading. I read it because LAINI TAYLOR.
@@mynameismarines I'd knew of Laini Taylor but that was my first time reading her and I remember going in not being until sure what it was about except fantasy, I don't even know if I read the synopsis, I needed an audiobook so I picked it up and was utterly blown away.
@@TheWordN3rd I love those reading experiences so, so much. It makes me feel warm and fuzzy just to think about the unexpected surprise of a beautiful book.
@@mynameismarines All three of the book I mentioned were like that! I picked them up to have something to listen to and they rocked me. It makes me which I went into more books blind.
Interesting! I've had a few people recommend this one.
great review! thank you
I really want to read this. I think the white woman character might, unfortunately, hit too close to home on occasion.
This was a great review and made me want to pick this book up even more. Also- I love that shirt!
Thank you! And I hope you enjoy it if/when you get there.
I have to read it
I was already so excited to read this and now I think I need to read it RIGHT AWAY