‘Everyone is feeling it': This book nails millennial alienation

Los Angeles Times

2 days ago

Emily Hunt Kivel's book is unlike any novel you will read this year, a story about millennial angst that is also a bewitching fable. Evie Cavallo, Kivel's protagonist, is a 20-something mid-level graphic designer at a New York ad agency who loses her rented apartment and finds herself cast adrift. Landing in a fictional backwater town in rural Texas called Gulluck, Evie discovers a hidden gift for shoemaking and finds herself welcomed into an eccentric community of fellow cobblers. 'Dwelling' is social commentary wrapped into a delightful allegory about identity, work, ritual and tradecraft.
I chatted with Kivel about her debut novel, and how, despite its fantastical elements, 'Dwelling' nails our present cultural moment.
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I started reading your book thinking, 'Ugh, a polemic about the housing crisis,' and by the end of the book I was deeply moved by Evie's journey.
That's what I wanted. I wanted readers to think they were reading one thing and to end up at the end thinking, 'Where the f— was I?' I wanted to write a book that changed shape and form while in the reader's hands.
Was that the original intention going in?
I don't know if I started out with the intention of writing the book I did, but I certainly didn't want to write a maudlin dystopian commentary on the housing crisis. I did want to touch on this feeling of complete instability that millennials in particular are feeling, but also I think everyone is feeling it to some extent — this incredible lack of stability, and alienation.
Evie, maybe, kind of wants to be a creative, but instead she blossoms by learning a craft that involves using her hands and her head, not a computer.
I think there's a parallel between finding a craft and coming into your own, and in that way, I think it's a fairly earnest description of what it feels like to discover yourself through something that you're passionate about. Evie goes from being an insular character who's living a self-absorbed life, because that's what society wants us to do, to living a life that's actually very generous.
The book takes on the contours of a fable. Did you read fables in preparation?
I read a lot of fables just to keep myself motivated and interested during the writing process. One of the primary texts that I found very helpful was Italo Calvino's translation of Italian folk tales. It brought me back to this kind of irreverent but weirdly earnest and enchanted quality that I wanted to create in the book.
Unmoored from her prior life, Evie finds her identity in Texas. I think this is something a lot of people are struggling with, not just Millennials. We are asking: Who are we? What is our purpose in life?
I think we're meant to feel relatively valueless in our society right now. The economy wants us to feel that way, and so I think what Evie is doing is finding value in herself and giving the middle finger to the version of society that she was living in.
The key element of Evie's new life is this robust community that welcomes her.
I wanted another world to open up to Evie, a world that's oriented towards life rather than the self. The book is really the story of how to find a home, and what makes a home. Community is the only actual way to resist the forces that we have in our society that are alienating us from our work, friends and family.
In the acknowledgments, you thank the UCLA Writing Extension program. What was that experience like for you?
One of the most formative experiences of my life was the UCLA Extension. I went to UC Santa Barbara and was absolutely miserable. and so I graduated early and moved to L.A. I was finding community and portals into another world at the Extension, which is available to everyone. I was writing alongside such a diverse array of people. I finally started to feel like a writer there. I took classes with Lou Matthews, who I think is the heart of the program in many ways.
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Hamilton Cain weighs in on Ed Park's new collection of stories 'An Oral History of Atlantis,' submitting that 'We're complicit in his fiction … the act of reading a jumble of synapses in our brains, spinning in all directions like a spray of bullets.'
Chuck Hogan's 'The Carpool Detectives,' about four moms who solved a murder, is a 'true crime mystery that reads like a novel,' according to Diane Garrett.
And finally, Stuart Miller has a chat with 'Jeopardy' host Ken Jennings about his new book, 'The Complete Kennections.'
Located just steps away from the ocean, Manhattan Beach literary mainstay Pages, A Bookstore is one of L.A.'s best indie shops. We chatted with general manager Jeff Resnik about what his customers are buying right now.
What's flying off the shelves at the moment?
Some of our recent top sellers include 'The Ghostwriter' by Julie Clark, 'Run for the Hills' by Kevin Wilson, 'The Names' by Florence Knapp, 'It's Only Drowning' by David Litt and 'Tilt' by Emma Pattee.
Do you find that, because you are near the ocean, people tend to look for beach reads during this time of year?
Definitely. Being so close to the ocean, we get a steady stream of readers looking for something light and enjoyable to bring to the beach. Whether it's a breezy romance, fast-paced thriller, or witty novel, 'beach reads' are in high demand during the summer, and we make a point to stay well-stocked on them.
Given the infinite text we can find on the internet, why are books still important?
There's a tactile, immersive experience to reading a physical book — turning pages, marking favorite passages, setting it down on a nightstand. There's a different kind of focus and connection that comes with holding a book. In our fast-paced, distraction-heavy world, reading invites us to slow down. Books aren't just sources of information — they're vessels for reflection, joy, and escape. One of the best parts of my job is helping people reconnect with that experience, or discover it for the first time.
Pages, A Bookstore is at 904 Manhattan Ave., Manhattan Beach, 90266.