Kiley Reid

Kiley Reid (born 1987) is an American novelist. Her debut novel, Such a Fun Age, was published in December 2019 and was longlisted for the 2020 Booker Prize.[1]

Kiley Reid
Born1987 (age 33–34)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
OccupationWriter, novelist
EducationSalpointe Catholic High School
Alma materMarymount Manhattan College
Iowa Writers' Workshop
Notable worksSuch a Fun Age (2019)
Website
kileyreid.com

Early life and education

Reid was born in Los Angeles, California, in 1987[2] and raised in Tucson, Arizona, from the age of seven to 20.[3] She graduated from Salpointe Catholic High School and studied theater at the University of Arizona for two years before transferring to Marymount Manhattan College.[4] She later graduated from the Iowa Writers' Workshop.[5]

Career

Reid's debut novel, Such a Fun Age, was published by G. P. Putnam's Sons on December 31, 2019.[6] It was published by Bloomsbury Publishing in the United Kingdom on January 7, 2020.[5][7][8][9][10] It was longlisted for the Booker Prize in July 2020.[11]

The novel, which explores the relationship between a young black babysitter and her well-intentioned white employer, was ranked No. 3 on the New York Times hardcover fiction list[12] within two weeks of its U.S. release. It received generally positive reviews in numerous media outlets,[6] including The Washington Post,[6] Entertainment Weekly,[7] NPR[13] and The Atlantic magazine. It was the first selection of 2020 for Reese Witherspoon's book club.[14]

The Washington Post's review said that "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." The Atlantic described the book as "a funny, fast-paced, empathetic examination of privilege in America."[15] A review in The New York Times noted the book's "resonant insights into the casual racism in everyday life, especially in the America of the liberal elite," but described Reid's scenes and dialogue as feeling "deliberately styled for a screen adaptation," with "heavy-handed attempts to mimic millennial parlance."[16]

Reid, who spent six years caring for the children of wealthy Manhattanites,[15] began the novel while applying to graduate school.[7] She completed it while earning her MFA degree from the Iowa Writers' Workshop, where she was awarded the Truman Capote Fellowship and taught undergraduate creative writing workshops with a focus on race and class.[17] The book and screen rights to the story were acquired before she graduated.[7]

Reid's short stories have been featured in Ploughshares, December, New South, and Lumina.[17]

Personal life

Reid lives in Philadelphia with her husband.[16][18]

Bibliography

Novels
  • Such a Fun Age. New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons. 2019. ISBN 978-0-525-54190-5.

Short stories

References
  1. "The 2020 Booker Prize longlist announced". The Booker Prizes. July 27, 2020. Retrieved August 16, 2020.
  2. Henery, Michelle (January 25, 2020). "Kiley Reid interview: 'I don't like to protect readers. They'll handle it'". The Times. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
  3. Eubank, Johanna (February 1, 2020). "Author Kiley Reid returns home to Tucson after landing on New York Times best-seller list". Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved March 5, 2020.
  4. Eubank, Johanna (February 11, 2020). "Kiley Reid, author of "Such a Fun Age," grew up in Tucson and is returning for the book festival". Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved March 5, 2020.
  5. Button, Liz (December 18, 2019). "A Q&A With Kiley Reid, Author of January's #1 Indie Next List Pick". BTW. American Booksellers Association. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
  6. "Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid". Penguin Random House. Retrieved January 2, 2020.
  7. Canfield, David (December 17, 2019). "Kiley Reid has written the most provocative page-turner of the year". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
  8. Penguin Random House (November 4, 2019). "A Conversation with Kiley Reid about Such a Fun Age". Library Journal. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
  9. "SUCH A FUN AGE by Kiley Reid". Kirkus Reviews. October 14, 2019.
  10. "Fiction book review - Such a Fun Age". Publishers Weekly. August 14, 2019. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
  11. Marshall, Alex (July 27, 2020). "Hilary Mantel, Kiley Reid, Anne Tyler in Running for Booker Prize". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved August 2, 2020.
  12. Egan, Elisabeth (January 9, 2020). "Kiley Reid Has Done Her Share of Soul-Searching in Coffee Shops". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
  13. Masad, Ilana (December 28, 2019). ""Such A Fun Age" is a complex, layered page-turner". www.npr.org. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
  14. "Hello Sunshine". Hello Sunshine. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
  15. Hayes, Stephanie (January 8, 2020). "'Such a Fun Age' Satirizes the White Pursuit of Wokeness". The Atlantic. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
  16. Christensen, Lauren (December 31, 2019). "When It Comes to Race, How Progressive Are the Progressives?". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
  17. "Kiley Reid | Penguin Random House". PenguinRandomhouse.com. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
  18. Kovan, Brianna (December 28, 2019). "Such A Fun Age Author Kiley Reid Wants To Make You Cringe". Elle. Retrieved January 2, 2020.
  19. "George Washington's Teeth by Kiley Reid". Ploughshares. Retrieved January 7, 2020.


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