Creating Adulthood

From renowned culture writer Kate Carraway comes a potent, ultimately hopeful deep dive into everything that goes wrong in the transition to “real” adulthood in this particular era—examining how it could be better, and how it could be great. Many in the Millennial and Gen Z generations will not live the lives we anticipated living. We spend more time apart and alone than any generation before us, and a lot of the hallmarks of adulthood we were raised to expect—stable employment; home ownership; kids (if you want them); a reliable, upward trajectory; a “typical” life—seem out of reach. Instead, we simply try to get by, or just to feel better, as we meet a version of coming-of-age that is unpredictable and all-new. Creating Adulthood takes on and shakes out what is so disorienting about this particular era and offers a way through. With heart, humor, and razor-sharp insight, Kate Carraway explores the perils and the possibilities and reveals the answers that have been available to us all along if we know where to look: meaningful work; purpose outside of work; a sense of community; wellness and well-being; and different kinds of help.