This book did the rounds on ‘ere several months ago and I can see its appeal. It’s a fast-moving, personable novel which focuses on some of the hottest button topics of our time.
SAFA opens with the protagonist, Emira, being accused of kidnapping a child she is actually babysitting. This shocking moment of racial prejudice sets a series of events in motion where Reid can explore a range of issues such as privilege, interracial relationships and the pressures of motherhood.
The plot is the star of the show here and Reid kept even a more discerning reader like me engrossed by dropping sweet little cliffhangers at the end of chapters. This meant that even when Reid’s prose fell short (and it often did) I begrudgingly turned the page, desperate to know what happens next. Reid’s writing is zestful but the moments where she takes the greatest risks are often her weakest.
The emotive moments were unfortunately cloying and you could feel Reid just itching to go back to the dialogue on which she thrives. The characters speak like your least favourite millennial but it’s still somewhat convincing.
However, so intent is Reid on making this a book of its time that I can’t imagine it surviving in the public consciousness longer than a few years. It tries to keep up with the times so much that it veers into Keeping Up With the Kardashians, if Kim and company ever had anything interesting to say. And Reid really does in ways I’ve never seen other authors do before. She questions the ‘female boss’ archetype, the performative wokeness of well-meaning white allies in the struggle for racial equality. These aren’t easy topics to approach at any rate and Reid serves up plenty of food for thought. I found myself questioning a number of my own behaviours due to issues that arose in the book and I’m glad for it.
It takes a brave author to write a book so grounded in its specific moment and maybe an even braver one to fill it with controversial observations about the world it aims to reflect. Sadly, I don’t know if Reid’s writing is powerful enough to reach as deep as this book potentially could.
3/5
