Such a Fun Age Audiobook By Kiley Reid cover art

Such a Fun Age

Preview
LIMITED TIME OFFER

3 months free
Try for $0.00
Offer ends July 31, 2025 at 11:59PM PT.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 3 months. Cancel anytime.

Such a Fun Age

By: Kiley Reid
Narrated by: Nicole Lewis
Try for $0.00

$0.00/mo. after 3 months. Offer ends July 31, 2025 at 11:59PM PT. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $18.00

Buy for $18.00

Confirm purchase
Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use, License, and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.
Cancel

A Best Book of the Year:

The Washington PostChicago Tribune • NPR • Vogue • Elle • Real SimpleInStyle • Good Housekeeping • Parade • Slate • Vox • Kirkus Reviews • Library Journal • BookPage

Longlisted for the 2020 Booker Prize

An instant New York Times best seller

A Reese's Book Club x Hello Sunshine Book Pick

"The most provocative page-turner of the year." (Entertainment Weekly)

"I urge you to read Such a Fun Age." (NPR)

A striking and surprising debut novel from an exhilarating new voice, Such a Fun Age is a binge-worthy and bighearted story about race and privilege, set around a young Black babysitter, her well-intentioned employer, and a surprising connection that threatens to undo them both.

Alix Chamberlain is a woman who gets what she wants and has made a living with her confidence-driven brand, showing other women how to do the same. So she is shocked when her babysitter, Emira Tucker, is confronted while watching the Chamberlains' toddler one night, walking the aisles of their local high-end supermarket. The store's security guard, seeing a young Black woman out late with a White child, accuses Emira of kidnapping two-year-old Briar. A small crowd gathers, a bystander films everything, and Emira is furious and humiliated. Alix resolves to make things right.

But Emira herself is aimless, broke, and wary of Alix's desire to help. At 25, she is about to lose her health insurance and has no idea what to do with her life. When the video of Emira unearths someone from Alix's past, both women find themselves on a crash course that will upend everything they think they know about themselves and each other.

With empathy and piercing social commentary, Such a Fun Age explores the stickiness of transactional relationships, what it means to make someone "family", and the complicated reality of being a grown up. It is a searing debut for our times.

©2019 Kiley Reid (P)2019 Penguin Audio
Coming of Age Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Women's Fiction Heartfelt Funny Thought-Provoking

In Conversation

Debut novelist Kiley Reid takes a fresh new look at racial and class tensions as she goes beyond the now-ubiquitous filmed scene of a Black person faced with a fraught confrontation. Listen in as she discusses all that went into her approach, including labor laws and hair stories.

Critic reviews

Winner of the African American Literary Award

Finalist for:

The New York Public Library's Young Lions Fiction Award

The Mark Twain American Voice in Literature Award

The VCU Cabell First Novelist Award

The NAACP Image Award

The Athenaeum of Philadelphia's Literary Award

A Book Club Pick:

Vox • Marie Claire #ReadWithMC Buzzfeed Book Girl Magic Well-Read Black Girl WNYC Get Lit With All of It Nerdette

“Reid constructs a plot so beautifully intricate and real and fascinating that readers will forget it’s also full of tough questions about race, class and identity….With this entertaining novel, Reid subverts our notions of what it means to write about race and class in America, not to mention what it means to write about love. In short, it’s a great way to kick off 2020.”—Washington Post

“A complex, layered page-turner…This is a book that will read, I suspect, quite differently to various audiences—funny to some, deeply uncomfortable and shamefully recognizable to others—but whatever the experience,....Let its empathetic approach to even the ickiest characters stir you, allow yourself to share Emira’s millennial anxieties about adulting, take joy in the innocence of Briar’s still-unmarred personhood, and rejoice that Kiley Reid is only just getting started.”—NPR

“[Such a Fun Age] nestl[es] a nuanced take on racial biases and class divides into a page-turning saga of betrayals, twists, and perfectly awkward relationships....The novel feels bound for book-club glory, due to its sheer readability. The dialogue crackles with naturalistic flair. The plotting is breezy and surprising. Plus, while Reid’s feel for both the funny and the political is undeniable, she imbues her flawed heroes with real heart.”Entertainment Weekly

Editor's Pick

Kiley Reid came to play
"It's been a long time since a novel stole my heart, but I've been obsessed with Such a Fun Age from the instant I clicked "play." Kiley Reid's voice is so fresh and fast-paced that listening to her debut feels just like watching the season's edgiest new dramedy. The story centers on a young black babysitter in Philly, her well-intentioned white employer, and whether a work relationship can ever really turn into family. I relished the moments I saw myself in the story, thinking, "yes, that's exactly what it's like to throw a three-year-old's birthday party for people you don't even like!", while at other moments I felt like a voyeur lapping up delicious soap opera-esque gossip. Reid's insights are so sharp and spot-on, serving up a fresh take on race and class. Finally, I couldn't talk about this book without taking a moment to sing the praises of newcomer Nicole Lewis, who is anointed by the narrator gods. Lewis keeps up with Reid's vocal acrobatics, exhilarating audiences with her code switching and other vocal stunts: everything from kids doing shots in the club, to moms drinking wine on play dates, to three-year-olds bickering at ballet class. Such a Fun Age is a true delight from beginning to end." — Rachel S., Audible Editor

Engaging Storyline • Complex Characters • Thought-provoking Themes • Realistic Dialogue • Unexpected Twists
Highly rated for:
All stars
Most relevant  
The narrator was very good- the book was thoroughly entertaining however I was disappointed by the ending. The main character seemed to still be immature in terms of figuring out her goals. The dismissal of her love interest made no sense since she was at fault and chose to do nothing to rectify the situation

The end was disappointing

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

I wasn't sure what ti expect but really enjoyed the book. Mrs. Chamberlain needed to put more focus on her marriage rather than focus on the nanny's life or past boyfriends that have no interest in her.

Surprisingly enjoyed the story

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

I was hard pressed to stop listening to this book once I started! It takes you down one path and then...just like that, you realize you took the wrong fork. I loved Emira - so much so, I wish I was in her circle of friends. (Although, in all honesty, I'm a 64-year-old white woman and am certain I couldn't keep up with her and her friends nor would they want me hanging around.) They're exactly the kind of friends every young woman needs - they tell you what you need to hear whether or not you wish to hear it. And, when you need them to back you up, they have your back. This book also gently addresses race issues that plague our country, but that need so badly to be addressed.

Where's my Emira?

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

Not sure what I was expecting, but this book is a fun light hearted gem. I really enjoyed it. Suggest you reward yourself and use a credit on this one.

Unexpected pleasure

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

First, I loved the narrator. This book has so many twists and turns it kept me riveted and also gave me a lot to think about in terms of race and racism in the U.S.

Great book with great narration

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

I absolutely loved it. This is such a great book! everyone is so rounded out and there is no clear hero or tyrant, and I was definitely left wanting more at the end of the story.

what a ride!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

this isnt something I would normally read in my own. but it came recommended from a friend. I loved how she read this book. it was delightful. the book itself was so good!

so good!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

I loved this book and I was rooting for Amira to find what made her happy. And sweet Briar... ❤️❤️ Can’t wait for the authors next book!

Great Read!!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

This is one where the narration is so excellent that it really elevated the experience. Glad I
listened and not read the physical book.

Outstanding narration

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

Great story line! I love the way the Emira is so smart for her age and how she is able to overcome adversity.

I loves this book!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

See more reviews