“Southern California is this huge, sprawling space,” says Straight, “but for my characters, there are all of these connections that come through geography and family.”
That is both a blessing and a potential burden to this book. While it’s wonderful to move away from the small nuclear family, which has become standard in Western literature, it can be difficult to keep track of so many names, traits, personal histories, and physical movements.
In one scene, while a new couple is exchanging information about their background, it’s plainly evident how truly extended each character’s network actually is. Matelasse, who has roots in Louisiana, tells James that she also has family living on reservation land in Mecca.
“I think this is my love letter to all the different geographies and places here that are also interconnected,” Straight said. “And the freeways are a huge deal, that’s why I always have where they are going, like if they’re on the 91 or if they’re on the 10 which, by the way, is the Christopher Columbus Intercontinental Highway.”
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