Unsheltered

Willa is one of the book’s two protagonists. Her story takes place during the early 21st century (perhaps around the year 2016). The practical partner in her relationship with her husband, Iano, Willa is anxious, uncertain about her own and her family’s future, and longs for stability amid the upheaval in her life. She’s also a concerned and involved parent in her adult children’s lives, stepping in to help Zeke in the aftermath of Helene’s death, taking care of her infant grandson, and reflecting with concern on her daughter Tig’s struggles to find a partner and adult identity.

Willa acts as a counterpart to Thatcher, the story’s other protagonist, but she is not a foil for him because the two share many characteristics—such as first-hand knowledge of financial insecurity and introspection on the social issues of their respective eras. Instead of using the two characters as foils, Kingsolver uses their similarities to create a sense of cohesion between her two storylines. Because Willa and Thatcher think about, react to, and grapple with similar things such as difficult family members, the role of science and reason in public discourse, and social status, Kingsolver’s exploration of these themes does not lose momentum as the story switches from one