To order a copy go to .“A comedy of good intentions” might seem an improbable description of a book that lays bare issues of race and class in contemporary America-but that’s how Kiley Reid aptly sums up her debut novel, Such a Fun Age. Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid is published by Bloomsbury Circus (£12.99). All in all, it’s a cracking debut – charming, authentic and every bit as entertaining as it is calmly, intelligently damning.

Hypocrisy and forgiveness get a look in, and in some respects, this is a novel that’s as much about money and class as anything. While race dominates, Reid is far too engaged a writer to let it define a narrative that has equally incisive observations to share about everything from maternal ambivalence to dating mores and dining fads. There are some memorable set pieces of exquisite social awkwardness, too, including a Thanksgiving lunch with ironically kitsch trimmings. All the same, Reid writes with a confidence and verve that produce magnetic prose, and she’s a whiz at dialogue, whether it’s the African-American vernacular that Emira slips into with her girlfriends or Briar’s bold toddler-talk. There’s something a touch too tidy about the way Alix’s character develops, and it’s true that the plot pivots on an almighty coincidence. Her response is galvanised by the reappearance of someone from her past, who brings unwelcome reminders of another racially charged episode, and as the novel powers forward, her apparent gaucheness takes on a very different aspect. In the wake of the supermarket incident, Alix sets out to make a project of Emira, becoming borderline obsessed in the process. Having scored a book deal, she has hired Emira to help out with her two kids, three-year-old Briar and baby Catherine, though in truth, it’s really just inquisitive, chatterbox Briar that she’d rather not have to spend time with. Empathic and pragmatic, Emira is the novel’s star, though Reid uses additional viewpoints to tell her story, among them that of Emira’s employer, Alix Chamberlain.Īlix is older and married to a local news anchor, with a social media career that has sprung from her knack for soliciting freebies via politely written letters. While her ambitious friends are beginning to make their way in the world, she’d be quite content to continue as a part-time babysitter, if only she weren’t about to age out of her parents’ health insurance. The babysitter’s name is Emira Tucker and she’s a college grad edging into her mid-20s.

Kiley reid