How does a generation go from raging against the machine to demanding to see the manager because the grocery store is out of kale? Middle-aged backpacker Conrad has had an epiphany and is coming home to become a responsible adult just like his friends. Vanessa, on her fourth university degree and sixth career path, is dubious. Becca, the A-type former child star, will believe it when she sees it. Nick just needs to get off his computer and out of his basement. Generation Karen upends Gen X's self-definition as society's forgotten middle children, exploring how a generational identity of cynicism and searching for meaning has produced a cohort of narcissists with a weakness for wellness, conspiracies, and multi-level marketing schemes.